


Strange Magic

by Twitchy witchy girl (bremo33)



Series: Do You Believe In Magic? [1]
Category: Game Grumps, NSP - Fandom, Ninja Sex Party - Fandom
Genre: Drinking, Drug Use, F/M, GameGrumps, Magic, NSFW, NSP, NewOrleans, Strange Magic, Violence, Voodoo, freaky shit, slowburn, this is wild man, yall better like this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-13
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-01 05:49:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 24,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16278938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bremo33/pseuds/Twitchy%20witchy%20girl
Summary: A trip to New Orleans for the grump and nsp tour seemed fun at first, well, I mean it WAS fun... until ya know, a trip to a fortune teller ends with you and Dan being inseparable....literally.





	1. Sweet child o' mine

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoy this fever dream of mine lmao

You stood in the middle of the street. The parade easily avoiding you, stilt walkers and the casket holders weren’t too fond of the road blockage, but you frankly didn’t care. How in god’s name did you ever end up here: alone in new orleans. 

Let's catch everyone up shall we?~  
~

You were on the couch n the grump space, half awake, while Danny sat at his desk finishing up his list for you. 

You were apart of the new flood of interns for Dream Daddy, you tagged along the character design crew. For some reason, Arin and Dan liked what you had to offer. They hired you on full time for starbomb and nsp. Every blue moon, you would make a minimal appearance on game grumps, but aside from that, you loved nothing more than being behind the curtain of the show. 

You helped design costumes and sketch out designs for animations. You practically had Dan’s measurements immortalized in your brain, even the slightest thought of sewing his spandex suits zipped a cold bit of anxiety up your spine. For someone who was tall and lanky, he sure enjoyed the troublesome fabric. 

“You have that glittery spandex still, right?” you turn your head to face him, your body refusing to leave its laying position. “Not a ton, do I need more?” you droned. He leaned back in his seat and looked at you chewing his cheek. “Maybe not, it was just a thought-” “well you gotta tell me this thought so I can answer you.” you snorted stuffing your face back into the cushion. 

He sighed and rubbed his neck, his free hand mindlessly scrolling up and down on the mouse. “Well, I dunno, I thought about a banana hammoc-” You audibly gagged. He grinned and playfully whipped you with his jacket. You flinched back and restrained your small laugh. “The NSP video is going to be on a beach, Would you rather it be a…. Speedo?” he hummed. You stuck out your tongue, “I am .5 seconds from quitting Avidan.” You teased.

He shook his head laughing and closed his tab. “You ready for the big trip?” He asked, more serious than the previous moment. You answered in silence. You were borderline agoraphobic, only comfortable in your home and workspace and everywhere else was anxiety central. You loved traveling with the group when they went on tours, but you honestly despised knowing you’d have no down or alone time, (which you direly needed…) 

Dan was very understanding of your anxieties, and was always ready to fight to help you out. Truthfully, Dan would be overbearing in his motherly nature, but you remained understanding to his actions. 

“What do I always tell you?” 

you remained silent.

“(Y/N)..”

Silence.

“Candy.”

You whipped your head to him so fast you thought you had whiplash. “I said stop calling me that.” you hissed. He grinned deviously at your defeat. You sighed, “If i ever need a break, no one will be mad if I say so.” you quoted. He nodded, “And I mean it, when you get in your head, you unplug and are incapable of working anyways.” You rolled onto your back. “What is the state line up?” 

“California cities first, texas, Nevad-” “no like, states or cities I wanna go to.” You interrupted. 

He smirked, “New Orleans is on the list.” You sit up staring him down. “Really?” he nodded, “I pulled some strings.” You leap off the couch and strangled him in an embrace. “Fuck- thank you Danny- oh my god-” You were a rambling mess, but beyond thrilled so you didn’t really blame yourself. You smiled softer as you felt his arms wrap around you as well. 

You had been dying to go to New Orleans since you can remember, you loved the city so much and had been practically crying for the guys to bend over for you and let them at least pit stop there. “I’m gonna go grab my phone from the charger.” you smile and waltz off, a pep in your step and your hips in rhythm to your joy as you made your way to the other room. 

Dan stared off at you, though you didn't pick up on your extra moves, he sure as hell did. Dan had been fawning over you since he drove you home one night and you relentlessly dragged on about how Stevie Nicks was so underrated unless you were a witch or chain smoker. He loved that fire that burned in you, you were like a furnace on a crisp January morning to him. Only issue…

You didn’t date.

You didn’t want a relationship, you wanted friendships and coworkers, your dog loved you and that was enough. Unfortunately, Dan wanted you to add him to the list of exceptions.

He fought and even dipped into pocket money for the crew to add new orleans on the list. He was painting murals for a blind woman, and he could only hope she’d eventually smell the paint fumes. 

His vibrating phone interupted his musing thoughts, ‘ready for the trip?’ read the text from Arin. he once more dazed at you before eagerly replying, ‘hell yeah.’


	2. its magic ya know

You stuffed your bags into the van, huffing at your pride for turning down Brian’s help. Of course you had the heaviest bags, it was only 25% of your stuff, everything else was fabric, sewing shit, art supplies, and hot glue guns. Arin and Suzy were already tuckered out in the van at this ungodly hour while Brian and Ross talked back and forth about the hotel situations. 

You stood on the tip of your toes, mercilessly shoving your suitcases in the pile, when you felt a familiar figure behind you. “I got it, (y/n).” Dan purred. You rested on your feet and groaned at his helping hand. You held still as he closed the back doors, placing a hand on your shoulder. You turn to look at him and grin leaning sluggish against the van. “I forgot you’re a morning person.” you snorted. He chuckled and tucked his hands away in his pockets. 

“It helps when you’re such a ray of sunshine.” he sarcastically added. You rolled your eyes at his comment. “I look like a rat.” you groaned. “More like a mole.” You punched his arm and rounded the van leaving him there in his fit of laughter. He silently let himself adore your morning voice, it was scratchy and low, but to him it was the equivalent of a low note on a violin. 

You wouldn’t admit it, but his morning voice was quite gorgeous too.

Everyone eventually piled into the van: Brian took the driver seat, Ross stole shotgun, Arin and Suzy remained a drooling slumber mess in the middle row, and Dan proudly sat beside your grumpy ass in the backseat. “The others are at the RV already right?” Ross asks turning to Brian, earning a gruff yes. Brian was latched to his coffee cup, clearly dreading the choice of this tour being done in an RV.

Ross randomly picked a station to fill the morning silence as the van took off. Dan, however, was sure to fill the silence in the backseat with his own voice. “This is your third tour, starting to feel more natural now?” he asked. You softly nodded as your head rested against the window. “Hey, use a pillow.”  
“I’m fine.”  
“No seriously, the road is-”

You jolted as the van bounced on the rocky road, your head becoming a blender for your brain. You groaned and retracted your resting position. “Told ya.” He sighed. Dan leaned back, blindly patting around the open access trunk for a pillow. “Here, I think it’s ross’s.” He turned his head to you, but was held back by the sight of your head on his lap, completely out cold. He felt his chest burn, the cold morning mist melted away in seconds from his body.

He only smiled as he carefully drew circles on your back. “Sing.” you sleepily demanded. He rose his scarred brow. “I thought you were out.” He noted retreating his hand. You shuffled a bit to signal him to continue scratching your back. “I’m working on it. Sing to me, jewfro.” He snorted. “That’s not racist.” he lowly sung. You let a weak giggle get the better of you and he ate it up. Fuck FUCK he had it bad, he was even nervous to sing in front of you. Hell, that’s how Arin found out he liked you. Dan was singing his heart out on set for a new merch ad, when your ungraceful ass stumbled in looking to steal some scissors. Dan went from a free concert to nearly choking on his lyrics. Arin was quick to pick this up, and never dropped it. 

Concerts were a welcome challenge when you tagged along, he would try and hit power notes and try new things with his voice if he knew you were listening somewhere backstage. Hell yeah the crowd ate it up, but his soul begged that you would too. He usually was given a “nice notes, beyonce.” after a show by you, it wasn’t much, but he soaked it up. 

The trip to the rv consisted of Dan singing you some Cindy Lauper. When you reached the RV, Dan’s heart practically began to pound like an african drum. He knew his choice for RV instead of air travel was to try and keep everyone more bonded on the long tour, but he also had a secret agenda of his own. 

As everyone made their way to the RV, Dan noticed your sleeping form refusing to wake up right away. It was like when you have a cat on your lap and know you can never move again, but he knew that wouldn’t fly with the others if he just forgot the tour to make sure you got your beauty sleep on his lap. He needed a compromise, this worked, right? 

He carefully lifted you into his arms as he carried you to the RV, Arin gave Dan a look, earning a guilty smile from the frizzy haired lad. “Dude.” Arin mouthed. Dan’s attention was stolen when he felt you begin to shift in his arms. “Rise and Shine princess!” Suzy shouted at you from the RV window. You groaned waking up and Dan gave her a tiresome gaze. “Im up, Im up, I’m- are you holding me?” Dan felt the heat burn in his face and he only managed a laugh. 

“Lets get goin!” he laughed from his chest. He let you get to your feet and followed close behind you. As everyone made their way on the RV, Brian stood by his seat and cleared his throat for attention. “Alrighty kids, clearly we wont survive sleeping on this bus the entire tour, so Ross and I managed to figure out certain cities we will stop for hotels in. Please remember that this is going to be a long tour so dont hesitate to speak up when you need a snack/bathroom break, or just need to stretch your legs.” Brian shot you a meaningful look, knowing you have a bad history of not speaking up for those things.

You only managed to shrug with a guilty smile in return. “Any questions?” Brian nodded at Suzy’s risen hand. “Can the pregnant lady have the bed?” she asked in reference to her blooming self. Brian scoffed, “Bed is for the important people Suzy, you got the rug.” He playfully teased. Arin rose his hand, “This means I get the bed, right?” Brian nodded, “But of course.” he grinned. Arin elbowed Suzy, “Eat it, Suze.” he snorted. 

And with that, the trip began.

The first few concerts and panels went smoothly, things did get wild in austin (as expected) but everything was the usual routine. Before every panel and concert, you and Dan always made sure you locked pinkies as you kissed your thumbs. It was stupid honestly, but Dan swore it was lucky for him, and if you were honest, you didnt mind it. Hell, before he went on stage in LA he ran to you and made sure you did your ritual. You remembered how frantic he was when he stumbled over yelling, “(y/n)! We forgot!” followed by your heavy laughter at his childish behavior. 

 

Day 3 rolled in and it was the last night in the RV before rooming in a hotel in Louisiana. Everyone was asleep in the RV as it sat parked in a rest stop. Suzy and Arin took the bed, ross, matt, and Vernon slept in sleeping bags on the floor, Ryan and Tucker took the sofa, and Brian slept in the reclined drivers seat. You were outside, enjoying having some time to yourself. You loved the tour, but your anxiety has started to grow mushrooms. You needed a time out before you started to become antsy. 

You sat on a lunch table in the grassy area, not minding the company of crickets and passing highway cars. This was relaxing, it was no xanax, but it was relaxing. “Candy!” You shutter at that ungodly nickname. You look over to the lanky familiar coming toward you. “Dan, it’s 4 am, go to bed.” He shrugged taking a seat beside you. “Shouldn’t you be asleep? Tomorrow is the big day.” he hummed. You nodded, nervously clipping at your nail beds. 

He smiled, scooting in closer beside you. “Wanna tell me why new orleans is so important?” he asked. You’ve explained it before, but knew he probably just secretly liked hearing the story. 

“My mom met my father there. She was driving through in her busted up beetle, just trying to make it to LA. but, her car decided to bust and break down in new orleans. She was unfamiliar with the area, scared shitless. But thats when she heard someone singing a song from Chicago. She found herself in a closed down bar, where she found my dad singing away at Mr. Cellophane. Sweeping up the mess of a bar fight. It was funny though, because dad had swore off romance after a bad burn from a woman. But, something about mom just, melted him.” 

Dan began to daze off. He had met your parents, he loved them. Your mom had a wild heart, a passion for music, and an eye for taste. Your dad loved bar-tending as much as he did writing short novels. Dan had a guilty pleasure of imagining the scene of their meet, but casting you and him as the roles of ‘mom and dad’. He couldn’t blame her dad, seeing someone like her kissed with the gentle new orleans street lights, would hypnotize any heart.

“I wanna feel that magic they said they did. We never went there as a family, but It’s a goal of mine.” you smile at him, your heart warming at his short blush. “Thank you Danny…it means the world to me…” He gulped down his throbbing heart. “I’m glad I could help.” he beamed. You rested your head on his shoulder, eagerly waiting for the sunrise. “I’ll make sure you find that magic.” he softly whispered. 

He’d go through hell and high water to make sure you did.


	3. Gypsy

The next morning, The RV arrived in New Orleans. You woke up to the damning shine of the sun, not entirely sure why it seemed so high up in your vision. That was when you realized your sleeping bag was warmer than you remembered…  
You look down and see that you are tangled up with Dan on a blanket under his massive comforter on the floor. Heat melted at your cheeks as silence blocked any startled rambling from escaping. 

He was still asleep. You looked around, seeing that Brian and Vernon were basically the only ones awake. No one had their eyes on you two, so you carefully allowed yourself to relax again. Your head cradled into his chest as you fluttered your lashes shut. His heartbeat was like magic to your ears. 

Wait.

Why were you so swoon by this moment? You liked Dan, sure, but it wasn’t romantic. He was your best friend. Maybe this was just because of how early it was in the morning… yeah… that’s it.

Your eyes were shut, trying to fall asleep, when you felt his skinny fingers comb your hair. You dared yourself to move, becoming a marble statue. Dan was awake, and he thought you weren’t. You controlled your breathing to hold the facade just a little while longer. “I promise I’ll get you that magic…” he softly spoke to himself. You felt your heart twirl at this. He was just being his usual protective self. He was your friend, he knew that made you happy. That was all.

Right?

~

After parking and situating in the hotel lobby, Brian came to the group lounging with a notepad page and golf pencil. “Alrighty, sleeping arrangements: Dan, Arin, Suze, and I can split a room. (y/n), Ross, and Vernon. And Tucker, Matt, and Ryan. Sound good?” Everyone nodded, not minding Brian’s set up. “Alrighty, room keys are going to the most responsible of the group.” Brian once again shot your forgetful ass a look, signalling you were not in the suggested. He passed keys out to Ryan, Ross, Arin, and himself. “We got a few hours to kill before needing to head out.” Dan noted.

Suze nodded, “We’ve been cooped up for a while, maybe we should travel around a little bit? I wouldn’t mind a look around town.” She mused. Brian shrugged, “Go ahead. Just remember the rental leaves in 5 hours.” “We can do alot of damage in 5 hours.” Matt chuckled. 

And trust me, you fucking do.  
After everyone settles in their rooms, it is only seconds after you relax in your bed when you hear Suzy swing open your room door. “Who’s ready?” She sang. You groan and stretch your back. Suzy was already dawning a black sun hat to top off her pseudo gothic look. When the room cleared of its testosterone hosts, she sat on the bed beside you. “So… you and Dan this morning-”

“Let me stop you right there, Suze.” You droned as you rose to your feet. “Is it really that appalling of a thought? C’mon, you two would be so cute.” “Suze, you know I don’t want to date. I’m just not-” “The romantic type? I don’t buy it, sis.” She grinned with her arms crossed. You eyed her, “Suze…” “Don’t argue with a pregnant woman.” She playfully jabbed. You held out your hand and helped her off the bed. “Let’s get going, they are probably waiting on us downstairs.” you noted.

She grinned, not wanting to stir you up again, but dying to tease how eager Dan was. 

~

Brian, vernon, and Ross decided to check out some bakery nearby while Tucker, matt, and Ryan joked around with some street act playing his banjo, his friendly dog eating up Tucker’s attention. You, Suzy, Dan, and Arin decided to let Suzy be your guide. She was spellbound to the art and music. Arin walked beside his wife, holding a number of street foods already for his 8 month pregnant wife, while Dan was clung to your hip holding a lemonade you both decided to split. Arin made witty comments about every eccentric street act and statue/ monument you all passed. 

“I thought you hated lemonade.” Dan asked while Arin rambled about some graffiti. You shrugged. “I had a bad hankering for it. Needed a fix.” you wittily reply as you pulled his cupped hand to you and took a sip from the bendy yellow straw. “Besides, this is homemade. Tastes alot better than half the non gluten shit in LA.” You sucked on your bottom lip trying to savor every bit of the sweetened juice. Dan smiled, “Are you enjoying this place as much as you think you would?” You nod at him, “It’s gorgeous. I mean, I didn’t think it’d be this much of a swamp too, but it’s still remarkable.” He nodded, smiling at your joy. 

“How about you? Enjoying this city?” You look at him, his wild curls are tamed into a scrunchie he borrowed from you. “Actually, yeah. It’s exciting here.” He beams. You get butterflies at his joy, you loved that he was actually enjoying the add on to the tour, and not dreading it like you feared he would’ve. “That reminds me, I need measurements of your torso. Your banana hammock is going to be enough fabric, but I am going to make sure it doesn’t scar anyone with the mental image of a poorly fit swimsuit.” 

You cringed at the thought and he let out a belly laugh. “Come on, no one can resist the Sexbang. Even you would be tripping over yourself for the chance to get a front row seat to THAT show.” You play up a gag and heave over pretending to vomit. “I’m going to kick your shin, I swear it, Leigh.” He snorts and ruffles your hair, “Fight me, Candy.” You glare, completely grown tired of this inside joke of a nickname. You lazely swing at his chest and he easily dodges it and captures you in his arms. “You’re mine now, shorty.” He teased. You groaned as his arms locked in place holding your back to his chest. He towered over you, his chin resting on your head. You lightly rocked back and forth as Suzy made a sudden stop. 

Her dainty fingers began to mindlessly rub her belly as she stared down the “fortune teller” neon sign. Dan felt his heart pound.

Magic.

“Wanna swing in?” Arin asked you both, clearly reading his wife’s aura. Dan gazed down at you. “I’m down. I’m hella skeptical about it, but why not?” You roll your eyes with a grin. “Figures.” He snorts as he lets you go. “Not ALL jews are SKEPTICS.” “Mhmn.” you tease. 

The four of you walk into the dim lit shop. It’s dark, low lit wall lanterns only give light passage. Suzy approaches the front desk with a bell on it. Just as she is about to tap it, she jumps when her hand is beat to the bell by another. 

The woman had gorgeous chocolate skin, her hair was wrapped up in a white wrap with purple embroidery. Only a single thick braid slipped out of the bind, casually lingering off her shoulder. “No need to ring, sweet lady. I heard you outside.” Suzy blinked amazed. The woman then eyed Dan and you, “You two were loud enough for everyone to hear.” You both share a blush at your embarrassing horse play outside. 

“So...how much is it? er- a session?" Arin asked. She turned to him. “10 for couples. 20 for singles.” Suzy's lips spread inyo a sly grin, hitting you at what her next words would be, “Well that works out! Arin and I have been married for 5 years, Dan and (y/n) have been official for what, 3 years now?” You gave a distasteful look to her, slightly shocked to hear Dan chime in. “Happily, About to hit the halfway mark!” You looked up at Dan, his arm now gently draping your shoulder. 

You and Dan obeyed, taking a seat on the vintage couch. "Might as well get out story straight.” you softly smiled, tucking your legs on the couch. Dan obliges, reclining in his seat. "Okay, so how did we meet?” You ask. He grins, “You sent in a submission for the pour some sugar on me video. You tried to stand out from the Interns, made Some better designs of the candy lingerie, Sure caught my eye.” You groaned rolling your head back, "Can we please not mention that.” He giggled and carefully grabbed your ankles and you ragdolled your body letting him plop your legs across his lap. 

“Okay okay, But 3 years?” “That’s what we are sticking with.” “We got this Avidan.” You held out your pinky, this earned a giddy smile from him. He wrapped his pinky around yours and you both kissed your thumbs. 

~

“A Girl?” Arin asked. “Two.” the woman replied. Suzy beamed at Arin as he remained still in awe. The couple decided to be surprised by the gender, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask a fortune teller her guess on the matter. “Infact, I recommend drinking this.” She rose from her seat and searched her cupboard. Arin stiffened a bit, slightly unimpressed by the sly Merchandizing. "Here, a floral based tea. Finish the final month with this tea every morning. This will ensure she is beautiful in face and soul.” He gave a weary smile to her salesmen shift, but suzy ate it with a fat spoon. “Thank you so much-” “Madam Charline.” She nods, “Madam Charline…” Arin finishes the session with payment and the trio makes their exit.

You and Dan notice how upbeat Suzy is holding her jar of something while Arin tucks his wallet away. 

She then shifts to you both rather eagerly.

“Lets not wait any further, my lovely lovers.” She mused with a purr in her smirk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I PROMISE ITS GETTING TO THE GOOD STUFF NEXT CHAPTER PATIENCE PLS


	4. Devil Woman

You and Dan sit across from her, she is poised and collect. Her glowing crystal ball sat in the middle of the table. “So, what should I read? Your stars, futures, palms…” She leaned back in her chair, “Or should I read your hearts?” Dan and you shared a look of being intrigued. She grinned victoriously. Swiftly, her hands made one simple motion, and they were then holding a deck of tarot cards. 

“You, my beautiful boy, are the oldest. Pick a card darling.” Dan looked at you, clearly a bit lost. You only shrugged in response. He chewed on his lip as he tapped a card. She spread the deck out in an order, she then carefully drifted her hands over the cards before flicking her wrists. Three cards flipped over, revealing their true form. You and Dan both nearly jolted at the sudden motion. Your heart slowly began to soar, sure this wasn’t the magic your mother and father spoke of… but it was damn near close to it. 

Dan was taken back, still trying to figure out what trick she did to make that happen. “As I thought.” she looked to you both. “You are close, aren’t you?” You both share a smile, “Probably more than needed.” You tease. He rolls his eyes. “To be fair, no one can resist my charm.” You groaned and Dan shared a laugh with you. 

She clearly did not miss this banter.

She hummed to herself as she tapped on the middle card. “You two aren’t normal lovers…”

Busted.

“You are soul bound.”

Oh shit, wait-

“Love now is practically man made, people choosing who to be with, not letting the universe merge their soul mate to them. No wonder divorce is so common now… But you two…” She grips her crystal ball, “You two are true soul mates.” 

Uh

You and Dan match in blush and awkward silence. “Well…” you softly chuckle. Her eyes snap to you. “There is hesitation though.” Dan suddenly is reeled in. “It seems one of you is ignoring your heart. Your souls are screaming for the other, yet only one of being listened to…” She carefully eyes you. 

Obviously she isnt talking to you, you don’t even have feelings like that for Dan!

She begins to radiate a more impatient aura with you. “Give me your hands children.” Dan resists a laugh at this, but obeys. You both give her a hand. She carefully guides them to the crystal ball. “Let mama help you both. But it only works, if you are willing.” You hesitate, but Dan is already on board. “Lemme here it, mama.” he jeers. 

She inhales sharply as she places her hand on both of yours. Her eyes fall shut. The white noise of the room suddenly vanishes along with the lights, save the glow of the crystal ball. “From this moment on, your freedom of ignorance will no longer exist. You are bound to the other until both souls are connected.” 

Her grip tightened.

“I now tighten the chains your souls are linked to. You shall now be bound to them as well.” she began to hum as her head tipped back letting out an odd rythm. You felt Dan begin to get clammy, you knew this stuff kinda threw him, so you knew this mumbo jumbo must be doing a number. You tapped your fingers impatiently, wanting to free him from this moment. You were about to speak up when the crystal ball made a loud shriek before cracking straight down the middle. 

Her head snapped back to poise and the lights flickered back. Dan immediately stood, taking your hand in his, “Thank you, so much for this… uh-um we need to get going. How much?” She holds up her hand, “On the house, my boy. This was long overdue…” Dan awkwardly nodded and gave a partial wave before walking out with you. “What the holy hell was that?” He asked. “Yeah, I thought they just give a reading or what not, not a whole spell.” You replied. As you began to exit the shoppe, you noticed a symbol on a painting. For some reason, this image stained your mind. 

Suzy and Arin sat on a bench waiting for you both. “How’d it go?” Arin asked, Suzy’s mouth currently stuffed with potato wedges. You and Dan eye each other before erupting in laughter. “It was sure somethin’.” You note. 

~

The rest of the day, you and Dan were practically bound by the hip. You both enjoyed the other’s company, sharing food and even mocking madam Charline’s wild head throwing. 

Eventually, it was time to go to the hotel. The four of you hopped on a trolly (Suzy’s feet were DONE with walking). You sat by Danny sharing headphones listening to whatever songs he had. But your attention was captured when the car passed a familiar bar. You gripped Danny’s leg, shaking him from his daze at the town. “What?” He asked, rapidly turning to you. “There! That! That’s it!” He frantically looks around for what you were talking about.

That was when he saw it. The bar lined with edison lights, loud karaoke echoing from it. He quickly reached his hand up to signal they wanted to stop, but you gently grabbed his bicep to stop him. He looked at you stunned, “I thought you’d wanna go in?” you nod at him, “Yeah… but we are going to be late… You really can’t afford to be late… besides, it was at night. It’s like 3 pm right now.” He smiled weakly and relaxed his arm, your hand not leaving its spot on him. “How about we go back tonight? Just me and you, So it’s more personal for you.” 

You rest your head on him, “I’d really like that…” 

Once again, his heart is an african drum. 

~

You stand in Dan’s dressing room helping him get dressed. You’ve seen Dan nearly naked God knows how many times, never was this an odd sight to you. Sure you can admit it wasn’t a bad sight to see him in just his underwear sometimes, but hell if you ever admit that about your best friend. 

“You ready?” You ask him as he turns to you. He nods. “You work magic every time, (y/n).” You smile at this. The room suddenly shifts in aura, his smile goes from joy to… something warmer…

“About that reading today…” You laugh at his words, “What a shit show, right?” You snort. He laughs drlyly, “Yeah… um… I-I have to tell you something-” 

“Dan, you’re on in five.” You both look to the stage manager interrupting. You silently thanked the rudeness while Dan was clearly not a fan. “Alright, thank you.” He replies with a dry smile. He looks back to you, “Go get em’, Avidan.” You smile at his light laugh, “It’s Sexbang, babe.” He jokes as he makes his exit to the door. You laugh with a heavy eye roll. You watch him walk to the door. 

“Good luck out there-” Dan reaches the door “Sexb-” You immediatly feel yourself thrown in his direction, tripping over yourself and falling. Dan whips around to you. “Shit!” He drops to his knees, tending to you. “Are you okay? What happened?” He examines you for injury.   
“I uh, I dont know. I guess I just tripped?” You slowly assumed. He nodded, “Dan! You’re on!” The voice yelled out. “Shit, You sure you’re okay?” he asks getting to his feet. You nod, “Go-go!” He nods and runs off. You slowly raise to your feet before following after him. You go to the backstage, and just as he is about to go on, he stops in his tracks.

“Wait!” You hold out your pinky, already catching on. You quickly complete the tradition and he tears off to the stage. You feel that familiar pull when he is on stage and find yourself dangerously close to the stage. The band is announced and everyone soaks up Danny and Brian. They go on performing their classic hits, a few covers here and there. 

The night was coming to an end, and the concert needed to go out with a bang. You smirked at him when the familiar piano of “danny don’t you know” came on. He performed it as dramatic as usual. Smoke machine and all. The concert was going great!....

And then it happened.

You heard someone call your name, giving one glance to Dan before going further backstage to Tucker. “Yeah? What’s up-” There was a sudden crack and echo of a mic violently hitting the floor as the crowd shared a gasp. You whipped around to see what the hell happened, 

When you saw Dan trip over himself as he was practically dragged to your side of the backstage and thrown on the ground. “DANNY.” You run to him and look him over as brian follows over. “What the hell?” he whispered. Dan looked at the ground morbidly confused as to what happened. “Dan- Dan- danny what happened?” You ask cupping his face. He stares at you in shock. “I dont know, it was like-like i was being pulled to the side and I-I dont know.” 

Brian helped him to his feet, “I’m good, lets uh… lets wrap this up…” Dan droned. Everyone around nodded. Brian worked as a support for his friend as he walked him back to the stage. 

Unfortunately, the moment he crossed the curtain, was the moment you turned to go get an icepack for him. 

This was also the exact moment you were both practically shoved backwards toward each other and thrown on your backs. Once again, you both attracted a crowd backstage. 

What the hell? 

You both sat up and looked at eachother, confused out of your mind. 

But a single voice hummed in both your heads.

Clear as fucking day. 

“You shall now be bound to them as well.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOOOOOOOOOO


	5. Under Pressure

The song finished up with you hanging out in perfect distance. The moment the curtains closed, Dan sprinted to you, grabbing your wrist and dragging you with him to his dressing room. “What in the hell?” he shuddered as he slammed his door shut. “You’re telling me!” You bark back. “Okay okay, hold on one second, just-” You take a few steps away.

4 feet apart.

He is still standing still. 

7 feet.

Nothing. 

You nod and turn to walk a few more feet, when the sound of Dan’s feet rapidly shuffling turns you around. 

10 feet. The sweet spot. 

As you turn Dan stumbles into you, nearly throwing you off balance. He grips your arms to keep you upright. “You good?” he asks. You nod. “Yeah, It’s 10 feet. We can’t be 10 feet apart.” His brows furrow. "How the hell is this going to work…” You throw up your arms. “How did this happen?” You eyes fixed to a dark glare. “That damn psychic, She had some writing on her wall.” Dan’s face fell into that of icy fear,

“What the hell did we get into…” Leaving him to ponder his worst nightmares, you pull out your phone. You try and search whatever you can. “So what, was it witchcraft?” He groans. You shake your head biting your lip while he throws himself in a chair, tiredly rubbing his face. “I doubt it, doesn’t seem like something Wicca…” your investigation is put on hold when Brian swings open the door, “So do you wanna explain what the hell happened out there?” He yanked his ninja mask down to reveal his down turned mouth. He looked at Danny, eyeing him once more over for any scan of injury. “I’m good, Brian…” You and Dan look at the other, communicating with your eyes that you had no fucking clue how to explain what happened without sounding batshit crazy. 

“Is this going to happen again tomorrow? We have a panel around noon.” He leaned against the door and crossed his arms. “No-no, we should be fine.” You chime in. He looks to Dan for confirmation. Dan is still locked on you, but still gives a nod for him. Brian sighs and shrugs his shoulders. “I gotta go clear things up with the venue, they thought you were both having seizures or something.” You both remained quiet as he made his exit. 

Once he left, Dan quickly locked the door. “We are just starting out the tour, (y/n)...” “I know, Dan. We can just go to madam Charline tonight..” His eyes shifted to a sadder expression, “We won’t have time for the bar if we do…” he noted painfully.

You swallowed the thick reality down, realizing that wants and needs were essential in this moment. “It’s fine… We really have to get this figured out… The stages in Miami and Tampa are massive. I can’t just loom behind a curtain there.” Dan sighed as he carded his fingers in his hair. “Let’s try and slip out while we can, we can catch a trolly and head over.” 

You let Dan change out of his Sexbang attire and dress more casual (or acceptable.) You both manage to quietly slip past the stage crew, somehow dodging the careful eye of Suzy. As soon as you both make it past the stair doors, you tear off down the steps into freedom. “Okay, you remember where the place is right?” He asks.

“Yeah, it’s only a mile from the hotel.” You both mindlessly barrel through the final set of exit doors, frozen in your steps at the scene before you. “Shit…” you mutter under your breath. You both completely forgot about the usual line outside waiting to see Brian and Dan after a show. Dan captures a hand behind your back as he quickly tries to guide you both to safety. You flinch hearing some of the fans call out for him, some begging for him to stop and greet them. You knew it probably hurt his heart to reject fans… he was always so passionate about being kind and appreciative to his fans, but the fact he had to turn them away, you knew it was going to do a number on him. 

“I’m sorry! I will tomorrow- I’m so sorry!” He managed to croak out. After finally making it out of the line up, you both swung around the corner and straight to the trolley. He relaxed against the brick building as you heaved over trying to wheeze for air. “No time… to rest yet-” As if on cue, the trolley bell rang out. Grabbing Dan’s arm, you lead the both of you onto the car, finally sitting and relaxing from the run. 

After about a half hour, you finally arrive at your destination. Dan had to eventually shut off his phone and take yours, unable to handle the constant alarms of people trying to reach you both. You frantically search around, trying to find this damn gypsy shop. “Dan!” You tugged on his sleeve, pointing to the building. He instinctively began to run in the direction, quickly stopping when hearing your feet begin to drag. “stOP FUCKING RUNNING WITHOUT WARNING.” You snap throwing your wallet at him. 

“IM SORRY.” he yipped back. 

 

You both approached the door, mercilessly banging on the door. Not at all minding the flashing closed sign. “CHARLINE! OPEN UP!” growing impatient, your open palmed banging becomes tight closed fists. “HELLO?” Dan calls out, cupping his eyes to see through the darkness. After quite some time passes, You slide your back down the glass door in defeat. Dan’s hollering and banging relaxes and he soon joins you on the ground.

“Tell me this is just a bad dream…” you softly mutter. Dan carefully curls an arm around you, inviting you in to rest on his shoulder. You welcome the action, resting your head on him. “We won’t give up on this, (y/n)... Arin and Suzy were here too. We should ask them about it and explain what happened.” You only managed to weakly nod to this. His chest rose and fell heavily. “I’m so sorry…” he nearly whimpers. “No… no don’t be… You didn’t do this.” You softly smile at him. “There has gotta be a way to fix this…” You hopelessly suggset.

Dan begins to comb your hair with his long fingers, knowing that this calms you down. “You’re getting anxious…” He noted. You don’t respond. “Did you need your medicine?” You shake your head, “I’m just scared, Danny…” he felt his chest tighten at how pained your voice sounded. He knew how important being a lone wolf sometimes was for you, and now you’re literally latched to someone for god knows how long…

He couldn’t help but hurt for you…

He carelessly pressed a warm kiss to your head, shutting his eyes softly as he also took in the faint smell of your shampoo. You allowed this, truly not minding his affection. You felt roses bloom on your cheeks, your heart began to warm. You softly shut your eyes smelling his usual odor of soap of overpowering deodorant. You and Dan have held each other and had close intimate moments like this before, but they were always out of platonic endearing… but why did this just… feel like so much more?

Almost like…

Your eyes shot open. “The wall-” you quickly stand up, peeking in through the window. “The what?” He asks looking up to you. “The symbol on her wall.” You pull out your phone, managing to capture the image as best as you could through glass with a bright flash. “Got it.” Dan rose to his feet, his hands shoveled into his pockets. “We should head back…” you regretfully note. He nods, “We leave right after the panel, but maybe we could try and swing by before or after?” You agree to this, and begin your trek back. 

You guys were so wound up in the moment, you didn’t even really notice that you were holding hands.

~

“Fuck…” you mutter. You and Dan stand in the hotel hallway, completely unable to think up a plan for how the fuck this room thing will work out. “Maybe it’s just the right distance?” He unsurely suggests. You groan rolling your eyes, “I highly doubt it, Avidan.” 

You both nearly spent the entire night pulling and sprinting from the other trying everything in your power to go into your separate rooms. Hell, it nearly looked like the scene from inception where everyone was just flopping around the tilting hallway avoiding death. 

Soon enough, you were both worn out, and out of drive. “We gotta compromise…” he grumbled letting his head rest against the wall. You look at him. “We could share a room? I mean we both have an open spot.” He shrugs, “Better than getting an entire hotel room to ourselves.” You give a pathetic smile at this. “Alrighty, My place or yours?” 

It took every bit of will power inside of him to not make a fucking crack in that very moment.


	6. All night long

Long story short

That was the roughest night you both ever experienced. 

You lucked out with fibbing to Ross about how “dan got locked out of his room”. The guys were easily accepting this, assuming soon-to-be parents were probably knocked out, and Papa Brian was beyond sleep at this hour. Where the trouble came in, was the night routine.

First: you both wanted a shower. Dan had performed a concert, any if we are honest, all that running and sweating caught up with ya. So when you tried to shower first, Dan had to try and play it cool about constantly being thrown into the locked bathroom door. When Dan showered, you found it utterly hard to even lie about why you needed to be so compressed to the door. 

Second: Bed. You have slept at Dan’s place countless times. Hell, you guys have even shared a bed too! But tonight, was beyond unnatural. You fell into the usual position of sharing a bedding, but sleeping on opposite ends. This didn’t phase Ross or Vernon, thankfully. But apparently the spell on you two wasn’t pleased with this. You and Dan would constantly wake up to the sound the other’s voice. This was followed up by a “Dan shut the fuck up” or “(y/n) can it wait please..”. 

And third: The bathroom. You unfortunately had to P E E. Naturally, you assumed ‘i can just walk to the bathroom and piss like a normal person’. But oh ho ho, hell, were you wrong…  
You tried to silently escape to the illuminating bathroom, locking the door behind you. But once you approached the glorious porcelain, the loud thud hit the bathroom door. You nearly pissed yourself hearing Dan’s silent swearing and sleepy grumbles. 

“I’m so sorry…” You whispered through the door to him, going back to conquer your bladder.

And after that, you both basically just gave up. You slept back to back together, the weight of the long night shutting your eyes into a nasty slumber… for 3 hours.

“Rise and Shine, boys.” Ross greeted as he plopped down on the bed beside Dan, sliding on his sneakers. Dan responded with a gruesome groan. “Little longer… please…” he whined. Ross smirked, leaning back a bit to spy on you, seeing you out cold. He then crouched down beside Dan’s face. “Hey, If you just wanted some time with (y/n), just say so next time, dude.” Dan rose an eyebrow at him. “I’m sorry?” he asked in his rough morning voice. “Yeah, Brian texted asking where you were before you came in.”

Dan felt himself freeze up. Ross pat his arm, “Ill be at breakfast with Vernon, Don’t forget to lock up!” He grinned and waved at Dan before slipping out of the room. Dan broke his spell of stillness when he felt you shuffle behind him. He sighed, “you hear that?” You respond with a soft grunt. “How are we gonna explain that one?” He rolled onto his back, looking at you from the corner of his eye. “I don’t care, Danny… I just want sleep.” He huffed with a weak smile, now rolling onto his side to face your back. 

“Sorry I kicked your face in my sleep.” He chuckled. You smirked, your eyes still shut. “That was literally the least horrible part of last night.” Dan gave a tired chuckle. You rolled over, now staring into his eyes. He looked as if he was searching your eyes for something, your heart began to feel off beat. Why though?

“You look like hell.” he teased, his thumb caressing your cheekbone. You scoff, “Dan, your voice sounds like the grudge, shut the hell up.” He laughed more lively. 

~

You and Dan stood backstage at the panel, the bags under your eyes basically twinned to his. Dan tried to listen to the convention director explain how the panel would run, you tried to listen to how you were allowed to just relax backstage… but the exhaustion between you two was far too powerful. “Dan?” He blinked, alerted by his name. “Dan!” He looked to Arin. “Dude, did you hear any of that?” He gave a burned out grin before throwing a thumbs up.   
Arin responded with a faint nod before resuming his discussion with the director. Dan looked to you, nudging you shortly. “We got this, Candy.” You’re far too tired to throw a fit about the name, and can only manage to grunt in reply. “Hey…” he carefully bends to eye level, “We got this, (y/ln)... mkay?” he holds up his pinky to you. You smile, locking your finger with his and weakly kissing your thumb.

~

The grump crew made their way on the stage, the lovelies all cheering at the sight of their heroes. Dan was the last to go on, he gave you a friendly wave before making his entrance. You decided to blend in by standing by Brian, helping pass out hoodies to certain questioners. As they gave the short introductions, Brian silently leaned to you.

“What the hell happened last night?” you sigh at him and inhale sharply, “A lot.” 

He is about to say something, but is cut off by his name being called out. He reacts by playing his silent and sassy role. You giggle at him and watch as the Q&A rolls in. People asked the usual stuff: Advice on art, how to go about their start on youtube, personal stuff for Dan and Arin, Asking for updates on Suzy, and of course the occasional cringe questions. 

You began to find yourself growing ashamedly bored of just standing there, but lucky for you, Danny boy caught on. You managed to catch him making a wild face at you. You snort and restrain a laugh. He grins deviously witnessing this. He continues to make faces, stealing your attention and earning fits of laughter. 

Dan cursed himself for being so wrapped up in your aura. Fuck, seeing you laugh just made him feel like he was walking on air. 

He grinned and mocked Madam Charline’s head throw as subtle as possible, and at this, you let your nasty snort laugh escape you. You quickly cover your mouth when the fan asking a question shot you a dirty look. “I’m so sorry…” you whisper to him. Dan fights the horrible ache to laugh at your plunder by his doing. Arin leans to his mic, “Just remember that if you are proud of your work, don’t be ashamed to put a price tag on it.” The fan nods and thanks him before retreating to his seat.

The next fan eagerly approaches the mic. “Hello.” Ross sang. She waved, clearing her throat, and stares Dan directly down. “I have a question for Dan, concerning the accident on stage yesterday?” Dan’s face falters. 

Shit.

“Um, yeah… I’m all good. I just got dehydrated.” he forcibly laughed. “Why did you run out of the venue right after? No medics were called-” “Reveal your medical records, Dan!” Arin teased, clearly trying to hint to the girl that she was asking for a fat TMI. He gives an awkward laugh to Arin’s save and the drilling question. “I’m feeling alot better now, thank you.” he warmly answers. She hangs her mouth open, a bit taken back by the dodge, but shrugs it off taking her exit. When the next fan lines up, Dan gives a sly look to you.

You both knew you were going to have alot more uneasy questions like that soon…

The Q&A runs smoothly, wrapping up with a few more Louisiana based questions like what food have they tried and their take on the interesting “new orleans culture”. 

“Very vibrant and expressive.” Arin answers. “Great baked goods too.” Dan chimes in. “We got time for one more?” Ross asks the director in the back. “Alrighty, last question.” Arin states with a welcoming smile. “Whacha got, lovely?” Arin asks the woman sporting a baseball cap. She beams, raising her head to reveal her face. Arin and Suzy must not have recognized her, but you and Dan sure as hell did. You both went still, eyes wide in horror.

Madam Charline.

“My question is for mr. Avidan.” 

Dan is still a statue. 

“You’ve been a widely known bachelor, any luck sparking some magic while here?” The grumps all look to Dan. He is deathly silent. “Dan.” Arin whispers away from the mic. Nothing. “I’m assuming the silence is a…” Dan had to act fast, so, uh…. He did.

“Yes.” he spits out. He tries to sneak a look at you… but he should’ve known better than to try and slip that by the attentive fans. 

Or Suzy.

Nothing gets past her.

“Was that gaze at-” “THANKS FOR COMING.” Dan interrupts Suzy from the panel. The fans slowly fade into clapping and cheers as Dan awkwardly tries to wrap up the panel. He stands up and steps to the side to make an exit. 

Wait, wAIT DANNY WRONG WA-

You stumble over yourself and fall on your face. Dan exhales sharply realizing what he had done, and a few spectating fans hiss at the clear pain you had to be in. You groan and raise to your feet, looking up to see Charline. She only winks to you before slipping into the crowd. 

~

“Did you see her?” Dan asks you as you meet backstage. “Yeah, but she managed to poof away when i ate it.” You replied rather distastefully. He sighs at you, “I said I was sorry.” “Sorry doesn’t cure my headache, Avidan.” He groans and tips his head back. “Hey.” you both look to Suzy and Arin, rapidly approaching you. “What the hell has been going on lately?” Arin asks, a stern gaze locked on the two of you like children. 

Dan sighs, “you won’t believe.” “Try us.” Suzy pleas. You exchange looks before deciding to fess up. “It was the fortune teller.” They were quiet. “What about it?” Arin asks. You groan, rubbing your throbbing head. “I dont know what happened with you guys, but she pulled some freaky psychic shit with us.” you note. Suzy drops her brows, “Explain…”

 

So you did, you both confessed how she acted possessed, said you were soul mates, and how you literally can’t be 10 feet away from each other. 

Arin of course  
Laughs.

Suzy however, reacts more concerned. “I...guess that explains a lot…” She looks to Dan, “So the concert…” “(y/n) walked too far away, it’s like a magnetic field between us. We literally can’t be too far without one of us being pulled to the other.” “I get the feeling.” Arin teased wiggling his eyebrows at Suzy. She rolls her eyes smirking. And then it hits her. “Oh- oh! That makes so much sense!” She smiles widely looking at you. “Show me that symbol you saw.” You obeyed, handing her your phone with the blown up image.

“Just as I thought.” She hummed. “You’re not dealing with some random street magic. You guys got a voodoo spell on you.” 

Uh

“Excuse me, the fuck did you say…” you drone in shock. She nods, “Oh yeah, Guess Charline is a witch doctor… should’ve known, I guess. This place isn’t exactly a stranger to black magic being practiced.” Dan scoffs, “Oh yeah, OUR bad.” She throws her hands up defensively, “It seems like she put a spell on you two because she thinks you’re soul mates.” “but we’re not.” you reply.

Dan’s heart cracks.


	7. Heat of the moment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So just to fill everyone in on a tbh, I have drifted from writing for a while when i needed a break for personal reasons (lmaO) but I'm trying to fall back in love with writing and this is the product of that. I hope you guys really do enjoy this story. I have done WAY too much voodoo research and am probably gonna b spooked for the next few weeks but y ee t.

Finally, you were back on the RV, setting off to the next state.

Suzy spent hours studying Voodoo spells while Arin did his best to try and do his work while trying to think of ways to subtly keep you close enough to Dan during concerts and panels. Everyone else sectioned off to do their own thing… you and Dan were however, wrapped up in each other on the bed trying to catch the sheep you lost.

Suzy rushed to the back, her laptop tight in her grasp, “He guys, I think I found something-” she cut herself short as she watched you both sleep. Dan had you wrapped in his arms as you kept your face tucked into his chest. Your legs were twined together, and Dan snored as loudly as he did whenever he was in such a deep/relaxed stage of slumber. She smiled softly, leaning against the doorway. 

And she finally saw it. Whatever it was that Madam Charline saw, she now did too. She silently closed her laptop, accepting that this was a spell that was probably needed far more than you both really knew.

She carefully placed a quilt across the both of you. Dan opened his eyes, alerted by Suzy’s presence. “Shh…” She hushed. He looked at her, his eyelids still heavy with their lust for sleep. “You’re doing good, kid.” she whispered. Dan was clearly confused, but was quick to catch on when he felt you shuffle closer to his chest. He smiled at your sleeping form, placing a kiss on your head. He shut his eyes, once more falling victim to his desires of sleep. Suzy took this as her cue to leave. 

~

The RV parks at a campsite, the group all eagerly pour out of the vehicle, beyond blessed to stretch their legs. You and Dan sleepily tumble out after. Ross and Tucker clap seeing you both actually alive. “Yeah yeah…” Dan grumbles. “Thought you two were dead, we were about to start digging and everything.” Matt teases from his now set up lawn chair. “I’d come back just to kill you if you buried me with Dan.” you jeer. He returns a chuckle adorned with a playful shrug. 

“Suzy and Arin went to the main cabin to ask about buying firewood.” Brian answered no one while he began to tear up newspapers for the fire-pit. You sigh and look around you, the campsite was of course surrounded with woods. You felt slight relief, seeing a fat opportunity for alone time. Beginning to walk toward the woods, you pause feeling the sudden subtle pull behind you. You spin to see Dan unfocused on you and caught up with a conversation between Matt and Tucker. 

You see how he is joking around, still deadass tired, but clearly enjoying the company of someone other than you for a brief moment. You aren't too far (obviously) and decide to pop a squat on a stump nearby right along the cut for the woods. You just sit there, letting yourself daydream while giving Dan time to talk. 

You want your space. Damn, how long have you been around everyone? You feel your heart pick up pace. You really haven’t had alone time, have you? Your eyes drift back up to the group. Your heart is picking up, you are just sitting there awkwardly, aren’t you? What if they ask you to talk? You really don’t feel like it right now.

You begin to get restless, you need to leave. You get to your feet and attempt to move, but are once again met to the soft pull behind you. This time, Dan notices it as well. He gives a short glance to you while in discussion. He begins to collect the scene of you trying to push the border between camp and thick woods. 

You’re getting anxious.

He pats Tucker’s shoulder, slyly working his way out of the conversation and making a beeline to you. “Dan-” “I said, don’t be afraid to speak up.” he sternly comments. You shuffle uncomfortably under his gaze. “I just want some alone time…” Dan furrows his brows trying to come up with a plan. “Where do you want to go?” You shrug, “I don’t know…” Home. You want to go home. You want to run straight to your home in LA, wrap up in your blanket and breathe in your own air. You don’t want to be crowded by people. You don’t WANT to talk, you want to go home. 

“Stop.” Your racing thoughts stumble under Dan’s blunt voice. You stare at his drifting hazel eyes. “I know you want nothing more than to go home right now, and knowing you, I wouldn’t be shocked if you tried to book a flight out of Florida asap.” He taunted. “I know you want to be alone, and I’m sorry you can’t have that with… whatever is going on…” You take this chance to cut your gaze from his. 

“What can I do to make you feel comfortable? That’s all it is, right? You just need to be able to feel relaxed?” you chew your lip, he isn’t entirely off, but that’s just the outskirts of the issue. “Somewhat…” you sadly admit. He nods to this, gently rubbing your forearms as if to issue some warmth into you. “It’s not much, but we can go walk? The woods seems drown out enough?” he suggests. You know this won’t fix the problem at hand, but it might ease things at least. 

You pitifully nod, not wanting to shoot his hopeful idea down. He gives a welcoming grin as he turns to the group circled around the pit. “We are gonna go walk around for a bit.” He calls out. The guys shrug. “Be careful for gators!” Brian calls back. Does he ever shut off dad mode. You smile at their allowance and Dan eagerly leads you off on an open path through the thick trees and twigs. 

Dan walks beside you with his hands tucked into his leather jacket pockets. There is a heavy silence between you both. You want to fill the void with jokes and jeers, but you know that nothing will override the dire discussion that is inevitable. “We need to talk…” Dan breaks. You withhold a groan. “Hm?” you hum. He holds off for a moment, as if waiting until you are both deep enough into the woods to be safe from unwelcome ears.

“You know why she did this to us, right?” shit. Here it comes. “Yeah, Danny. She thinks we are soul bound or something like that.” You reply, your voice more dry than intended. He flinches weakly at the accidental attitude. “Does that bother you?” Your heart swells. “What do you mean?” you ask coyly. “Like, if she was right? If all this hocus-pocus was, actually right?” you both stop walking. 

You succumb to your furious blushing and try to avoid eye contact. “I mean, I don’t think I even believe that soul mates is a thing Dan-” “That’s not what I asked..” he states more firmly. He steps in front of you, practically forcing your vision to lock with his. “I’m asking if you’d be mad or resentful to that… would it honestly bother you to be ‘soul bound’ or whatever she said, to me.” You hesitate. Not because of the answer, but because you’re trying to find a way to communicate your heart appropriately without leading this conversation down another rabbit hole.

“Dan-”

“Just tell me the truth..” 

His voice is so soft, it almost sounds defeated, like he knows you will spit on the very thought.

“No.” You answer. His eyes perk up to you. “It wouldn’t make me upset Dan…” Shit, shit. You see how he looks at you, his eyes are practically blooming with hope. His chest is still, he’s trying to control his breathing. Why is he so-

He loves you… Dan loves you. 

You swallow back that thought as quickly as possible, you refuse to shine that light on your friend and taint his image to you. /he loves you/. You tighten your eyes shut, “Dan…” “I wouldn’t mind it at all.” he pipes up. Your eyes blink rapidly open to match his. He is no longer looking at you though. “In all honesty, I’m glad that of all people, it’d be someone I already have such a good bond with.” Wait, what does that mean? “Just know, if this is actually real… No part of me would be upset.” 

You feel your heart beat rapidly, your mind begins to spin. Hell, you wanted to get away from the group to focus on you, now you have to focus on Dan… but for some reason, you don’t mind it. You only respond with a tight embrace. Your arms lock around him tightly, your ear flattened against his chest. His heart beat is like a relaxing drum, his chest warm and rising with his breaths. He returns the hug, kissing the top of your head. “What the hell is this shampoo?” you raise a brow at him.

“I keep smelling it on you. It smells good.” You snort at his lack of attention. “Tea tree and lavender. It’s relaxing, huh?” he nods with his eyes fluttered shut. “Smells like a zen garden.” You giggle at him. “Smells better than your scentless shampoo.” you tip back to give your arm room to tangle your hand in his hair. “You have to use argon in this lion mane.” He smirks, “Is that so? Tell me more, oh wondrous hairdresser.” You are about to crack another witty comment, when you both fall silent. It was almost like a shower of heat and cold sweat over you both. “What-” Dan silently breathes. Your chests begin to tighten and the magnetic pull between you both seems to be stronger than it ever had.

You were already wrapped in the other’s arms. What the hell was wrong? But, the moment you both looked into each other’s eyes, something snapped in your souls. And with that, you both become practically out of control of your next actions.

Dan grabs you by your thighs, lifting you up to wrap your legs around his waist, pinning you between a thick tree and his own body. You grip his curls in your hands and hide your face in his shoulder as he kisses your shoulder. You feel out of body as his hand slowly traces up your side under your hoodie, softly gripping right at your rib-cage. Your hand drops to his back, sinking your nails into his flesh as his soft fingers tease along the back of your bra. 

What the hell is going on.

You both are clearly confused, but this doesn’t stop you, it’s almost as if you’re being controlled. The burning in your chests only radiates further heat. “D-dan.” you croak out weakly, trying to capture his attention. After a long pause, the heat vanishes from your chests and Dan drops you, you match him in taking heavy breaths as if your lungs were nearly collapsed. “What-what the hell…” he gasps in disbelief. 

“I’m so sorry- fuck-” He trembles looking at you. You get to your feet, calmly gripping his shoulders. “No-no Dan, it wasn’t you. I felt it too..” he nods trying to assure himself he didn’t just assault his friend. “What-what was that. My chest was tight and…” “I don’t know Dan…” you mutter. 

~

“Did it work?” Dan asks as he sits on the closed toilet seat, watching you work magic with makeup in the mirror. You sigh, the hickey on your shoulder managing to conquer any concealer you send its way. “No… nothing is working.” you hiss as you further massage another pound of foundation on the tender spot. “I’m sorry-” “for the millionth time, Stop apologizing. I know it had to be the spell. We both felt that pull.” He shrugs, resting his elbows on his knees. “But we were literally as close as possible, we weren’t pulling away at ten feet.” he notes.

You groan and let the beauty blender drop from your hand in defeat as the mark softly reveals itself through the makeup once more. Dan hands you another makeup wipe, “I swear to god I’m going to lay that woman out if i see her again.” Dan rolls his eyes at your empty threat. “IF we see her…” he regrettably points out. You inhale sharply, staring yourself down in the mirror. 

“If…” You repeat equally as weak. Dan looks away, searching his mind for some answer, when suzy opens the bathroom door, squeezing herself in the already crowded RV bathroom. “I got something.” You both snap your attention to her holding her laptop. You both follow her to the bed and sit beside her as she scrolls through her findings. Dan lays on his back, still silently shaming himself for the spell’s possession earlier. 

“So, what I can gather from this: the witch doctor-or priestess- used a pretty brave and heavy spell on you both. Usually it’s a dangerous practice to use love spells, since it is so eternally binding.” Dan eyes you, ‘eternally’ hums in his ear. “So what I gathered, is that she placed this spell on you guys because she said you were ignoring your soul’s ‘calling for each other’” you began to chew on your thumbnail. Dan swats at your hip, urging you to stop your nervous tick.

“Well for starters, the reason you can’t really ever find her is because she is only seen when she wants to be. The voodoo priestess hides from people, attempting to preserve her soul. Which explains why she only shows up when it seems most inconvenient to you both. I haven’t seen anything on spells like you described, but I found some small things that might add up?” She asks as she opens a second tab.

“Often times, number marking is significant. You said 10 feet apart?” Dan nods at you, “Any significance in the 10?” you both fall silent, ignorant to answer. “Nothing outstanding for me.” you reply. Dan shrugs, “nothing over here.”

Suzy furrows her brows as she continues on, “I mean, other than that, a lot of the spells seem to be hands on. Since I can safely assume she didn’t swipe your hair or ripped some article of clothing, she can’t control you. What is concerning however, is how the soul binding works. It seems that when souls are bound, nothing can rip it apart. That’s why love spells are so dangerous. But since I don’t know the exact spell she used, I can’t find any cure or overpowering spell…” She painfully admits. “So what you’re saying…” you trail off.

“Back to square one.” She sighs. “Just, if anything weird happens or something odd starts to stick out, let me know alright? It could really help.” You and Dan violently blush as flashes of the heated moment in the woods stain your minds. “Y-yup! We’ll be right on it Suze, Thanks!” You rapidly dismiss. She gives an unsure smile and collects her bearings before leaving you both to the gaping silence. 

“Well holy hell.” You exhale. “Square one…” He chuckles. You lay back next to him, the two of you momentarily enjoying the white noise that hangs in the atmosphere. Dan breaks the silence by tiredly lifting up his pinky, “Of all people…” you look at him, he gives a gentle smile to you, “I’m at least glad this shit is happening with you.” You aren’t exactly sure how to take that, but your heart still responds by melting under his words. You raise your hand up as well, wrapping your small finger to his.


	8. Tainted Love

Shit, shit. This is not at all what you signed up for. 

You and Dan managed to pull a fast one during rehearsal for why you were close by to him, saying you were keeping an eye on the costumes and making sure they were functional. But the time finally arrived where you can’t use that excuse. The stage is far too massive to even try and peek from off stage. Your limited options were either a) stand on stage awkwardly. b) be right in front of the stage, but limit dan’s space of freedom.

Neither of those options were doable.

So there you stood, completely out of touch as you helped Dan get his costume on. He notices your silence and looks at you, “Hey, It’ll be fine. We will figure something out.” He cheerfully adds. But you can only respond with a nod. Your hands are fidgeting and you find it painfully impossible to calm down. Dan responded to this by taking your hand, firming his grip. “We got this, Candy.” you give a weak smile and nod. 

You finish up his pirate jacket and look at him in the mirror. His face is dripping with fear, you can tell by his stress lines, and you hate it. He too is in a state of panic, totally unsure how this will all fall into place. All he knows, is that it has to work out… somehow. You wrap your arms around him, forcing him to accept an embrace. He places his hand on your crossed arms. You feel his body vibrate as if he was speaking, but he must’ve been whispering. 

In all honesty, you wouldn’t have minded just staying there the entire concert, Dan was a comfort, and holding him was a lot better than facing reality. And right now, reality was a bitch.

“Dan! You’re on in 5!” you release him hearing this, following him out of the dressing room. You stare at your feet as you try to mindlessly follow the direction the pull takes you in to him. “(y/n)!” you look up and step back seeing people pushing some props to the stage. You squint and try to make out what they exactly were. 

Wait. 

The light bulb flickers on and you suddenly feel the weight slide off of your back. “Dan!” he raises his brows and peeks over his shoulder, “yeah?” “The stage props.” He faces you and adjusts his belted pants. “What about the-” The light turns on for him too. “Holy shit, you’re a genius.” He beams. He tips his head back moaning and exhaling heavily relieved. “Dan!” you both watch Brian approach while sliding on his mask. “You ready?” Dan gives a proud smirk, “hell yeah.” Brian nods and wanders off, waiting for the signal to go on. Dan holds up his pinky for you, and you grin as you wrap yours to his, kissing your thumbs. 

~

You both are in awe with how well this worked. You simply plugged in some ear plugs and sought shelter behind a giant rock prop. Dan aced the show while managing to not throw either of you two on your asses. Hell, Dan must’ve been super happy, he was exaggerating notes and trying to hold notes out longer. “Nice job, beyonce.” You tease silently to yourself. You shut your eyes as you listen to his voice. God, one thing you were never ashamed to admit, was how beautiful he sung.

You sounded like someone slamming on their car breaks when you sang, so you were sure to appreciate good singers when they came by. Dan’s voice simply stole the very breath out of you, it was warm and soft, like drinking hot chocolate after hours of snow play. In all honesty, you loved it…

You loved that about him. 

Your eyes shot open, the burning began to slowly rupture in your chest. Shit. shit, not again. This was when you noticed Dan backing away from his mic more… he was feeling it too, you could tell by how hesitant his singing was becoming. Shit, not good. Hell, you were lucky you two were in shielding woods when that possession happened, but on a fucking STAGE? You had to relax your thoughts, you screwed your eyelids shut. 

Calm down calm down calm down calm down calm down-

Why did your shoulder burn so badly? You flinch, now physically hurting.You scratch at your shirt fabric, nearly ripping it to reveal the hickey, that was now radiating heat. Gawking at it was all you could do. It nearly sizzled with how hot it felt, it was red and throbbing. The familiar love mark left from Dan was now shaped into a… heart? It was decorated, almost like… like a symbol. What the hell? Whatever it was, it MELTED your skin with seething heat and pain. 

To both your delight and demise, Dan held out his last note in take on me, officially bringing the show to a close. As the lights blacked out, you found yourself snatched up by the skinny figure. “Dan-” “I felt it again.” he cuts off. You blink blindly as he guides you both off stage. “Dan-” He stops while you both are halfway backstage. He watches as you reveal the mark. His eyes now trained on the sight in horror. “W-what the hell…” he mutters.

“I think we gotta tell Suze…” he silently agrees, taking your hand and leading you away. 

The drive to the hotel was basically spent listening to Suzy and Arin. mainly, Suzy fussing about you managing to leave out such a ‘minor’ detail. “That makes honestly so much sense. How do you guys not understand what is happening?” she yells. Arin holds her laptop open as he watches his wife ramble on. You and Dan sulk in the back of the uber as she lectured on, “read it, Arin.” 

“Soul binding is an irreversible spell in the world of voodoo. Sometimes, two souls are already bound, the priestess is unable to tamper with this universal truth. She may, however, use spells to awaken the lovers and seal the binding.” He rests his head against the car window and glances at his wife from the screen. “Do you get it? She thinks your souls are bonded. That's why she made that spell. She thinks you’re ignoring their calls for the other, so she made it impossible to ignore it. So I’m guessing that mark, was your souls trying to push through you and bond because you’re ignoring them.”

Dan squinted in disbelief, “So whenever that ‘possession’ happens?” “Is your souls basically taking over. I can’t say what triggers it obviously, which is something you two should honestly try and figure out.” “Woah woah woah there missy- you WANT it to happen again?” You ask taken back. “That’s how experiments work, honey. I’m not saying go ape-shit on each other, but whenever the sensation strikes, try and calculate what causes it.” she shuts the laptop and rests her head against the seat. 

“I have an idea, You two might not be too fond of it, but it might… help?” honestly, you could care less at this point, you’re ready to take any offer given.

“Get a hotel room-”

“Hell no.” You snap. You feel Dan shift, clearly starting to fear the situation at hand. You remembered how broken he had felt at the previous incident…

“Now hear me out-” “Suzy, this isn’t some smutty fanfiction.” hm. “I’m not saying anything like that, (y/n), I’m saying you need a private environment. And what if it happens again, you want Ross or Brian to watch that unfold?” You turn bashful, ashamed at the imagery in your head of a familiar heated moment, only with the gagging viewers of Brian and Ross. “Hell, nothing may even happen. Wouldn’t it be a million times easier to be alone together than have to spark up some bullshit for why you’re inseparable? Just say you are working together on some costumes.” She suggested.

You plop your head against the seat in front of you. “I can’t hurt her again.” The crack in Dan’s voice nearly rips your soul from your body. “I cant- I wont. I won’t do that again..” he nearly hisses. Suzy sighs, clearly hating the following words. “Dan, you don’t get a say in that though… That is the Issue. Neither of you do. No matter what, if it happens, you will NOT be able to control it. If you want, we can get a room right beside you. Just yell and we’d bust in and break it up in seconds.” You and Dan share fearful looks, this terrified you.

You didn’t want to see him that shaken, and he didn’t want you thrown in that situation again. 

But shit… she had a point.  
~

So there you were. You and Dan laid in your separate beds, at least you had that. It was DAMNINGLY silent. Only the bitter truth of reality dangled between you both. “I need a shower.” you bluntly state. Dan simply nods to this. “Go ahead.” he calmly replies. You slide off of your bed and grab up your gym bag with clothes in it. “I won’t take too long.” you swear as you make your way to the shower. You only manage to make it halfway in the bathroom before Dan is stumbling in after you. 

You slip out an exaggerated groan. “Sorry.” You spit. He shrugs defeated, sitting on the outside of the open door bathroom. When he is around the corner, you strip down and begin cleaning yourself. It’s still quiet, and you hate it. You want to talk to him… but your anxiety taped your lips shut in fear of making things worse. “Dan.” you squeak out. He walks in, only letting himself hang out in the doorway, unable to see you. “You okay?” he asks.

“Oh- y-yeah, I um… Can you sing?” He raises a brow, a subtle grin begins to form. “I don’t see why not.” he proudly replies. You roll your eyes practically hearing his excitement to perform drip from his words. “Any requests?” He asks as he takes a seat in the doorway. You think, unable to pop an answer right away. “You can pick.” 

“Any song?” he purrs. You shrug at this, “Sure, why not?” you start washing yourself off when Dan’s singing comes into hearing. You smile softly hearing him sing Come and Get Your Love. He was determined to trap you with pure throwbacks, Yeah, you guys were only 10 years apart but still. He was basically a dino- 

“DAN.” He jumps and stops singing. You eagerly rip the towel from the wall and wrap yourself, nearly eating it trying to throw yourself from the shower. “TEN! TEN!!!” You shout. He blinks and is fully flushed. Confused at your screaming and flustered at you adorning only a towel before him. “TEN!” You shout with heavy laughter. “...yay?” he shakily replies. 

You sigh and roll your eyes. “Dan, fuck we are stupid! What did she say to you when you picked the cards?” He looked down searching his brain. And it hit him.

‘You, my beautiful boy, are the oldest…’

“She knew my age.”

“OUR ages! Ten years, Dan!” He rises to his feet, joy and relief flooding him. “Oh- OH, TEN!” “THE DISTANCE IS TEN FEET. BECAUSE-” “That’s the distance our souls stayed at…” “BECAUSE I WASN’T BORN YET.” You finish. He smiles widely, carelessly taking you in his arms as you both fume with joy at the revelation. Another step to figuring this mess out, no longer square one. But, this also awakens another revelation… if your souls were really waiting that time…

Your chests begin to warm up  
And now they are so close.

Your bodies flush with heat and cold sweat 

She was telling the truth.

You and Dan look at each other

Your souls are really bound.

You both quickly realize what is about to happen and instantly shove him out and slam the door shut. He sighs relieved, glad that he isn’t able to hurt you. You both lean against the door from your side. It was happening, what the hell triggered it? You waited as the silence signaled the heat taming between the both of you. 

“You good?” you ask. You hear him grunt in response. You slip into your pajamas before carefully opening the door. “I’m so sorry, Dan.” “Dont be.” he hums as he stares down at you. “I think I figured out what causes this.” You feel your breath trap in your throat. “But-but I think… I might be wrong.” he stalls. “Dan, anything helps.” you assure.

He painfully stares in your eyes. 

“I can’t say it without… I just-” “Leigh…” you softly choke out. His heart melts under your voice. Fuck, fuck he loved you. He wanted you to know… because that was what triggered it. The trigger was you accepting your love for Dan… but hell, you were deep in denial, and he… 

he flinches. Tears threaten to drip down his face. “Dan…” you see how broken up he is, and it murders you. All you can do is hold him tightly. “We can do this, Danny…” You hum into his chest. He nods, still mute. He places a soft kiss on your head. Softly, he whispers only for himself to hear,

“I love you…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took everything in me to not turn this scene into a ridden smutty fic lmAO PATIENCE. hope this isn't too much of a filler chapter.


	9. Turn Back Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SSHOR T chapter but v necessary to the story so enjoy

“Dan.” 

He groans, not ready to wake up.

“Dan!” 

Dude let him sleep, he’s been hella tired.

Dan suddenly jumped awake at the sound of a heavy bang. His eyes opened to… a bar? He sits up quickly, the atmosphere is no longer the RV couch he last remembered being on.

That’s right, you were cuddling him! You couldn’t be that far away. He whips his head around, scanning the bar to see… no one. “(y/n)?” he calls out. “Dan, we aint payin’ ya to sleep. Get yer’ ass to work, boy.” He looks to the man speaking at him. He does not recognize this man. Who in the hell is this? Dan’s ears basically popped when he heard the faint sound of Guns n Roses on the radio. He looked around for where the music was coming from.

“Dan, yer’ ass is on the line. Go split up those two again.” He follows the direction the man behind the bar is pointing, now focused in on the sight of two men punching and throwing the other on a pool table. Dan rose to his feet when one of them grabbed an 8 ball as a weapon. “H-hEY!” he barked out. The two stopped and looked at him. “Break it up!” he piped up. They glared at him, shifting between him and the scowling tender behind the bar. 

Finally, with a heavy shove, they broke it up. “Out of my bar!” The one man snapped. “Tim, this asshol-” “I said OUT.” He finalized with a familiar slam of his hand to the bar. Dan watched as the two men gingerly left, swiping their beer bottles on the way out. This was when Dan finally recognized where he was. “New Orleans?” he asked himself. “‘Know it, typical drunks can’t keep ‘ere hands off each other.” Timothy spits, wiping down the two men’s ghosted seats. 

Dan gripped the lip of the pool table, his heart began to race at an ungodly rate. What the hell? What the hell! What has happening? Dan grabbed at his chest, it was tightening, everything was spinning, no it wasn- yes? Was it? Oh no, he feels his lungs start to fight against his body, restraining the ability to breathe properly. “Dan.” He looks at Timothy, “You ok?” he gives a weak nod before heaving over the pool table, praying to fall back into line of sanity. 

He nearly jumps out of his skin when he feels a soft hand caress along the lining of his shoulder blade. “Shshshh baby…” 

That voice.

His eyes turn to stone at the sight of Madam Charline, dressed in high waisted jeans with a pinstripe tee shirt. “You need to calm, this isn’t real, baby.” Dan scans the room before resuming his gaze at her. “Where the hell am I- why am i here?” She grins and sits herself on the pool table. “You were crying for me in your sleep. Your soul was a wreck, lucky that Papa didn’t her ya.” he furrows his brows, “papa?” She snaps a glare to him, “Papa woulda’ chewed your soul and spit it out for the rats… after you beg to sell it to him.” 

Dan is quiet, clustered with panic and confusion. She sighs, relaxing herself from the outburst. “I’m trying to help you out. I don’t think you understand what’s going on.” “Then TELL me.” He snaps, this was far out of character for Dan, but hell he was tired of being nice. “Hey! Don’t speak to women like that, boy!” Tim yelled. Charline waved her hand at him and Timothy resumed his work as if the last second never happened. 

“Baby, that mark on ya lady’s shoulder is your souls crying for each other. The symbol for the love spell, if i’m correct.” She crosses her arms. Dan scoots onto the pool table beside her. “How do we undo the spell?” She snorts at his plea, “Sweet boy, i’ve told you how to do it. I placed that spell because your lady is ignoring her soul.” He winced at her words, “(y/n)?” “Yes, child. She’s under an entire spell of her own.” She chuckles.

Dan searches her body language for what the hell that meant. She snorts at his clueless behavior. 

“Denial.” she answers. He stares away from her, trying to let himself process this. “So, this spell would be over-” “If she finally drops her guard and gives her soul what it wants.” She grabs his shoulder, “You.” Dan’s heart begins to ache, hell, he knew he loved her and assumed the feeling was somewhat returned but… “She loves me?” He asks. She groans and throws her hands up, “Baby, is your thick hair compensating for a tiny brain? Of course she does!” she erupts with a hearty laugh. “You must be BLIND if you aint seein it.” 

Dan rakes his fingers in his moppy hair, his mind still racing, but now with only thoughts of you. “But like I said, that girl is under an entire spell of her own.” He peeks at her from under the wild curls curtaining his face. “Lucky for you though, all you need to undo magic,” She grins walking in front of him, “Is magic.” Dan looks up at her, and suddenly she is gone. Not only that, but the bar is no longer flooded with people, only Timothy and a sleeping drunk in a booth. “You ever gonna clean that mess up?” 

Dan slips off the table, taking the rag that Timothy holds out for him. “Keys are on the counter, lock up.” Timothy rounds the bar, kicking the drunk to wake up, and drags the stumbling man out. Dan is now alone in this bar. “She loves me…” he only manages to repeat. He smiles to himself, hardly able to control his giddy heart. “She LOVES me…” he hums, happily wiping down the bar. He knew that was it, he had an itching feeling that was the truth. But now that his suspicions were confirmed, he couldn’t help but feel his heart soar.

He walks over to the boombox, more than ready to shut off the sound of Tiffany’s I Think We’re Alone Now, when the sound of glass under his shoes distracts him. The bar fight, he forgot about that whole mess.

He groans, grabbing for the broom left angled against a bar stool. He begins to sweep, still replaying Madam Charline’s words in his head. But what she said… what magic what she talking about? Another spell? Dan knew NO spells, and he would rather not mess around with that stuff. He wasn’t wildly religious, but he knew there were lines you didn’t cross. But hell, what magic?

 

The radio made a nasty scratching sound before cutting to an entirely different song. 

And his body stills as the ragtime sounding song echoed the bar.  
Dan knew that song, hell, he only knew it for one reason.

“Mister… Cellophane…” he began to sing. He continued to clean the bar, singing away at the old musical number. He knew this scene, this story, he KNEW this! This wasn’t just some dream land, he now knew exactly where he was.

1985.

New Orleans.

A familiar little bar.

Dawning Edison lights.

The same damn song playing and Dan let himself sing away at it, all that was missing was-

“Hello?”

His eyes eagerly shift to the open door. His voice is cut off by the mere sight of you. He fought the uprising chuckle when seeing you dressed in mom jeans and a loosely tucked Rolling Stones shirt. But that was all paused the second he saw how the lights practically illuminated you. The deep Louisiana night accessorizing the golden bulbs, the peppered fireflies searching in the background. 

His heart burned at the sight of you.

This was it. How your parents met, and he suddenly felt it.

That was the magic he needed to fix things.

~

Dan sits upright faster than a bullet, his breathing is heavy, head still slightly spinning. “Where-what-” He pats in his surroundings, suddenly recognizing the blue couch he was laying on. “Dan, are you okay?” He takes you in, the sight of you is like a cold glass of water in the desert. Without hesitation, he snatches you into his arms, locking you into an embrace. “D-dan.” you blush furiously as his pda and pray up and down that everyone is still asleep on the RV and not watching this.

“I saw her.” he whispers in your ear. You shove him back to look in his eyes. “What?” “In my dream, she was there. She-I know how to fix this.” Your eyes glimmer with hope, ready to do whatever the hell you had to.

“We have to go back to New Orleans.”


	10. Send me on my way/kiss me slowly

How the hell would you both pull this off. There was no way. You and Dan could NOT pull off a 20 hour round trip in one day. 

But

You don’t really have a choice…

“Hell. No.” “Brian, listen-” “Are you high? Dan, we are literally on tour right now.” “Brian-” “Dan. I said no.” “Well, you don’t get to decide that.” Brian snaps a nasty glare at Dan. “What has gotten into you? You’ve been acting seriously off since this tour started.” Dan choked back his words, fuck he wanted to be honest with him. Brian had always been there for him, but he knew he wouldn’t understand, and he couldn’t blame him or be upset with that… but he can be frustrated.

“Brian, I need you to understand, I have to do this… I swear I will be back here the next day, perform my best show, and everything will be back to normal.” Brian exhaled sharply, rubbing his throbbing head. “And why does (y/n) have to tag along? She has work here, you can’t just pull people from their jobs…” “I know, but she is involved…” Brian’s brows furrow, “What is happening…” his voice sounds far more concerning then before. Dan’s chest tightens. 

“I wish I fuckin’ knew, man…” he regrettably sighed. Brian could only shake his head as he crossed his arms. “You have one day, Dan. One.” Dan threw his head back, a relieved laugh slipping his throat. “Thank you, oh my god. Brian thank you.” Brian was silent, only responding with a short huff before leaving his friend in his spot. 

“I’m sorry…” you softly piped in as you rounded the RV from your hiding spot. Dan shrugged, giving you a warm smile. “We got one day. Think that’ll work?” he asks you. “It should… if we leave today, we might even have spare time for rest when we return tomorrow.” He rubs your back momentarily, “Let’s call up a rental car.” 

It took a while, but you both eventually found a car rental business that let you take a vehicle out of state. When you arrived however, your gifted rental wasn’t what you expected. “Uh…” you grit your teeth as the lady hands the keys of the Volkswagen to Danny. It wasn’t some cute bug either, it was a dingy Herbie wannabe. You were more concerned about it busting down. “Is-is there really no better cars?” Dan asks, his kind nature heavily holding his anxieties together. 

The lady holds her cheesy smile, “She’s our only out of state car.” Dan gave a polite nod matching his fake smile. “Thank you, it’ll do just fine.” She waved us off as she made her way back into the building. “Well.” You start off. “Do you know stick?” Dan shakes his head, “that’s all you.” which is even worse, because between you both, you’re the shitty driver. Dan has countless memories (and doesn’t hesitate to mention them) of horrible driving experiences with you behind the wheel. 

You toss your gym bag into the back seat and drop into your own. Dan takes a minute to fight with the door handle before joining you inside. “Great start to a trip, huh?” he jokes. You give a heavy fake laugh before starting the bug. The second the car started up, you began your trek to Louisiana… but stopping to fix the dead battery in Tallahassee. 

“This trip is CURSED.” You groan as you clamp the copper chords on the battery. “Four hours in…” Dan hisses standing beside the generous stranger helping you start up. “You and your wife on a trip?” He asks with a heavy panhandle. “Oh- no she isn’t…” Dan defended. “Oh, my bad. Guess I just figured a man and woman on a long car ride were-” “No, no it’s cool. I understand.” The man shrugs and resumes chewing his strongly scented tobacco, nearly gagging Dan out. “Y’arent queer, are ya?” Dan nearly cringed at the man’s clear ignorance for socially acceptable small talk. “Nope. I’m not gay.” He gently responded. 

The man only gave a short nod before looking at you. “You ready, sugar bear?” He asks opening his car door. Dan sucks in sourly, trying to not take his slang too personally. “Yes, sir!” you respond back getting in the car. You flip the key, hollering in joy when it starts up. “Aighty, good luck on your drive!” The man farewells as he pulls his plugs from your battery. “Thank you, sir.” Dan adds as he slips in the car through the window, not feeling like messing with the nasty door handle. 

The man shuts your lid and takes his leave. “Are we resting anywhere? I know we probably shouldn’t throw the car into a long drive right after an assist.” Dan asks. You smirk at him, “Since when were you car savvy?” you jeer. He puts up his hands defensively, “Hey hey, I’m just asking.” You shrug as you resume your drive, “Maybe in mobile. That seems to be along the route, it’ll leave us about a 2-3 hour drive the next day, ten hours back.” Dan agrees to the compromise, gripping the seat bar and reclining.

He lazily throws his feet on the dash, a hiss slipping your lips as you swat at him. “This is a rental, sneakers off the dash.” He snorts, kicking his worn shoes off. You throw your face in the opposite direction when the smell of his socks hits your face. “Dan, i swear to god.” He laughs as you aggressively roll down your window. “Get my perfume from my bag and mask that nastiness.” you whine. He responds with a chuckle while he digs through your gym bag. “Which perfum- why do you have like six bottles in here?” “Some people like to not smell like sweat and balls.”

“Says you, you’re always going off about how you like my deodorant.” “Well you sure as shit aint usin it on your feet!” You bark back. Dan is rolling with laughter at your cries for help, only earning more powerful pleas from you. “Dan, can you PLEASE-” “Yeah yeah.” his laughter softens as he grabs one of your fall scents and dowses his feet in it. You inhale sharply at the change in the air. 

“Thank GOD.” you moan. He gives a small smile to you. “Hey.” You slightly face him while keeping your eyes trained on the road, “mhmn?” he holds his pinky up. You mindlessly wrap yours to his, ready to bend in and kiss your thumb, Dan slightly turns his hand, kissing the back of top of yours. You blush and retreat feeling his velvet lips on your skin. “We got this, candy.”

You are too overwhelmed with your blush to even try and fight off the nickname.

~

“You think they’re gonna fix it?” Suzy looks at Arin as he plays on his switch on the bed. “I have hope.” Suzy admits. “Dan said that’s what the voodoo priestess said to do. So I don’t see what would go wrong.” “She could completely shut Dan down.” Arin adds. “Charline? She’s on their side it sounds like.” “No, Suze, I mean (y/n).” She stops her doodling and looks at her husband, who is now paused from his game. “I mean, She’s deep in denial…” arin has a slight tinge of pain in his words, and it breaks Suzy to hear this helplessness. 

“I know. But I honestly think it’ll be okay.” She relaxes back and resumes her drawing, but is once more met with an interrupted cramp. She hisses in pain as she leans back. Arin’s eyes dart to his wife. “You okay?” “mhmn… just some Braxton Hicks.” She dismisses. “If you’re sure… you drinking that tea I got scammed into?” He taunts. She rolls her eyes carefully sliding off the bed. “Yes, /honey/.” she seethes playfully. She makes her way through the RV hall, a firm grip on her belly. 

“Fuck.” She groans at another sting of pain. Arin tries to remain quiet. She continues her walk, nearly making it to the small microwave before she stumbles, white knuckle gripping the counter. “aaAAH.” she hisses through her teeth. This time, Arin jumps to his feet racing to his wife. “Suze, are you sure these are they-” “yes, Arin. They are just ghost cramps.” 

Arin falls silent. “Suze.” “Arin, I love you, But I will not hesitate to whack you-” “Suzy.” His voice is firm, distracting her threat. This is when she feels it too. The lukewarm fluid slowly racing down her leg. “Tell me I pissed myself.” She silently speaks. Arin shakes his head, bending down to his wife and helping her to her feet. “Brian!” He calls out. He manages to sit her on the sofa before growing more panicked. “BRIAN!” he shouts. 

Brian urgently races in, “What-what’s wrong?” he asks as he clips his glasses to his shirt. He then sees Suzy and runs to her aid. “Oh shit, She okay? Are you okay?” She gives a shaky nod as she tries to ease her breathing. “This isn’t right, Arin it’s 8 months-” “I know, Suzy. Just try and breathe.” Brian pulls his his phone out quickly dialing 911. Ross and Matt swing open the RV door to the commotion. “What’s going on?” Ross asks. 

“Call Danny and (y/n), Suzy’s in labor.”

~

 

“How’s she doing?” You ask leaning against the car as it filled with gas. “She’s stable, not quite ready to start pushing yet.” Dan replies sitting on the hood. “How did she go into labor so soon? She’s a month early.” He asks. You shrug unplugging the gas. “Who knows, on the bright side, they were really close to 9 months anyways… maybe the baby will be fine?” Dan nods, clearly distracted with concern for his friends. You retrieve your card and sit beside him. “Hey…” He looks at you. “It’s gonna be okay. They are in the hospital, have access to help, and are surrounded by family and friends.” Dan smiles painfully at you. 

“We can turn around.” His eyes lock on you. “What? We can’t-” “Dan… I’d rather live with this spell a little longer then make you miss something like that.” He looks down at his feet, “Can… can I think about it?” you nod rubbing his back. “Let’s park somewhere and call it a night.” He smiles at you, happy for your compromise. 

Rain sets in as you pull into a rest stop. All the nearby motels seemed too risky for you both, and wanted to make the most of the rental. You flick the car lights off, sinking completely in darkness of the night and rain, only the illuminating light of the radio existing. Dan is staring blankly out the window into the mass sheet of rain. “I think it’ll be a girl.” He muses. “I think so too.” you reply. 

Its silent. You hate how dead it seems, fuck… there has been so many quiet moments between you two lately. You hated that lingering ache it gave your gut. “Dan-” “I love you.” 

...  
What.

You stare blankly at him. He turns to face you from his gaze outside. “I’m sorry?” you ask, your breath nearly ripped from your chest.

“I said. I love you.” He repeats. Your heart pounds heavily as your breath trampolines off the lump in your throat. “I don’t know if we will make it back to New Orleans, but I know that spell or not. I needed you to know I love you. I fucking love you.” he softly says, a gentle laugh lacing his brave words. 

You remain silent, in both shock and disbelief. Never did you think he would just… say it. 

Say it.  
“Dan…”

Say. It.

You feel your chest tighten.

Say it!

You fight at the handle and flee from the car. “(y/n)!” he sloppily fights with the window, throwing himself out. His feet being swept under him as the magnetic pull drags him to you. You keep trying to walk away further, not entirely sure what you’re doing. 

You are stopped only a few feet away from the car when he grabs your arm. His touch warming you in the cold rain. You look in his eyes, seeing how damp they were with hurt and want. “You know why we can’t undo this? Because you’re so deep in denial. You refuse to just let yourself feel.” “Stop it, Dan.” You hiss. “No!” he snaps. You flinch at his outburst. “Why can’t you just open up. Say it.” “Dan.” “Why can’t you just fucking say it?” His voice wavers with pain, growing more and more strangled at the fight you give.

“Because I can’t trust it Dan!” You admit, tears swelling up your eyes. “Love is fucking horrible, Dan. It rips you apart and builds you up only to shred you back down in the end. I mean look at my parents.” He winces at you. “You love hearing about how magical it was in the beginning, never caring to talk about how fucking nasty the divorce was.” His grip doesn’t loosen. “It’s a fleeting feeling. If you give it power, that’s all it’ll do.” 

The silence falls once more on you both. 

He finally lets you go, silently making his way back to the car, without choice, you follow him. 

So there you two sit. Heavy Florida rain being the only white noise aside from the static on the poor reception radio. You both shiver soaking wet as you wait for the heat to finally work on you both. 

“I’m sorry…” he whispers. You shake your head as you rub your eyes. “I know, I know it was a lot for you to see that happen to them… I hate you had to see that fallout.” he admits. “I also hate how it tainted your image of love…” he adds. You swallow the thickness in your throat. “But i also grew up seeing love. I saw it in Avi and Debbie.” You fight to keep your eyes off of him. “They fucking love each other… that wasn’t fake. That didn’t flee or fall apart.” He shifts to face you in his seat. 

“Just, just let me prove you wrong… that love isn’t as nasty as you saw.” You finally let your eyes lock on his. “Let me prove that magic you saw is still here.” You stay quiet. He inhales deeply, his ragged breath signalling his burning anxiety. “Can...can you say somethi-” he is cut off by you crashing your lips into his. You softly try to draw back before his hands capture your face and keep you to him. His lips knit to yours. His breath is warm and nearly enough to shed your body of the chill from the cold rain. His hands drop to your thigh, pulling you to straddle his lap as you continue to kiss him. Your fingers lace into his curls as his hands drift up your side. You pull away for a short moment to let him remove your soaking shirt. 

You swiftly bring your lips to his neck as his hands find their way back to your hips. He grips you so tight you swore there’d be bruising. He held you as close to him as possible. “This isn’t the spell.” he softly moans. You break from his neck to look in his eyes. 

“I know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> made this one extra spicy to make up for the shortness of the last one. hope you liked it


	11. I think we're alone now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the shortest chapter, but trust me  
> the next one is going to be A L O T... cos i wanna introduce chaos

You wake up to the sound of your phone alarm. Your face is tucked into Dan’s bare chest. His body vibrates with his soft snoring. His hair is wild and messy, clearly from last night. You try to flutter your eyes shut before you feel his hand gently stroke your forearm. You perch your chin on his chest as you look up to him. He has a tired smile on his face as his eyes sleepily open to yours. “Morning.” he sighs. “Morning..” 

He pats around and checks his phone for any update with Suzy. “Poor thing is still in labor.” You pout as he tucks his phone away. His hands finding their way back to your forearms. “How’d you sleep?” you ask gingerly. He laughs and rolls his eyes as he swirls his neck to try and make it crack. “I officially miss the RV floor, that’s for sure.” You giggle, carefully trying to sit up. Dan grabs your shirt from the backseat and hands it to you. “At least it had time to dry.” He hums. 

Though you both weren’t entirely naked, it was still more than you’d like to let strangers outside the car see. Dan was shirtless in his boxers while you somehow managed to keep your underwear on, though it was clearly adjusted for last night’s actions. 

Dan hissed as he peeled his back off the leather seat, his skin tender from the sweat and scratches from your unreasonably long nails (for someone who bites them all the time). Though Dan couldn’t complain much, you had his fingerprints bruised into your flesh along your thighs and waist. You honestly didn’t mind it, but may have minded the fact he was so raptured in the moment he didn’t care about the multiple hickeys dripping down from your neck to your navel. 

“Hey…” you look at him, his tired voice making your stomach flutter. “I mean what I said..” he dryly admits. You manage to gingerly nod at him, your hand softly tracing the lines down his chest. “I know..” His hands make their way back to your hips, he sits up to press a gentle kiss to your lips. Your fingertips gently mapping his cheeks as you adjust more into a straddle once more. A subtle moan slips his lips as he feels you push into him. 

Your moment is cut short by a tap on the window. “Shit-” Dan hisses as he mindlessly tosses you off of him. The park officer gives a disgusted look to him, “Wrap it up and leave before I write you two up.” He snaps. “No problem, sir.” Dan assures awkwardly. The ranger makes a swift glance down to Dan’s lap seeing before shyly leaving. You groan and make your way to the driver’s seat. “Thanks for that. I’m not a fuckin football.” you grumble. His smile spreads with dripping guilt. “I’m sorry-” “Save it.” you huff starting the car. 

~

Arin sat in the hospital lobby, his hands trembling as they clasp around a small dixie cup. Damn, it’s been hours… why wasn’t she ready to push yet? What if it was just a false alarm? Brian approaches him, easily patting Arin’s shoulder. He shivers for a moment stunned. “Hey, it’s gonna be alright.” Arin grins bashfully as he chews his lip, “She’s been in there a while…” he mutters. Brian sits beside him, slouching over to his friend. 

“I was a nervous wreck with Audrey. I was horrified about every little thing. Would she be healthy? Would I be good enough? What if something went wrong? I worried over everything, Arin. I worried for Rachel, I worried for our baby.” Arin’s grip on the paper cup is nearly crushing. “But, the moment I realized I just needed to let go and enjoy the journey, was the moment I held Audrey. And I knew it’d be okay.” 

Arin softens, releasing his accidentally held breath. “Thank you, Brian…” he softly chokes. Brian pats his back in comfort. 

“Mr. Hanson?” both men rise up from their seats at the nurse’s arrival. “Mommy and baby are fine and stable, but it’s getting closer. The doctor is giving it a few more hours at this rate, but thinks you’ll be a daddy by the end of the night.” Arin smiles, shaking his head in disbelief. “Thank you.” she nods before taking her leave. Brian snorts out an ugly laugh, “What?” 

“Daddy-”

“Shut up.”


	12. Every breath you take

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM PISSSED OML. Rant: so, I save up and am eager to go to the ninja brian luau in Chicago. I even pay for my friend's ticket. aND MY CAR BREAKS DOWN. SO NO CONCERT. "oh well, I'll just go to the next concert they have. Danny will even be at that one!" NOPE. GUESS WHO WAS AT THE CHICAGO LUAU. MHMN. DAN N Y. I need a glass of water. Enjoy your smut.

Your eyes briskly opened at the sound of a screech. You carefully study your surroundings, not recognizing when the hell you fell asleep on a bench in a subway. Where were you? You hesitate to rise to your feet, still trying to calculate if this is a dream or not. “Excuse me.” a woman pardons as she hurries past you to the train readying to leave. 

Your clammy hands detect the slim sheet in your grasp, a ticket to the A train. A train? You look around, your brain somehow starting to register where you are. You begin to follow the path replaying in your head. You’ve never been here, so how did you so easily know where to go?  
“You dropped this.” The male voice is unrecognizable, almost oily. You oblige, facing the stranger. His dark skin is rich, only faint white paint smears across his eyes. He is dressed in a tattered suit, his hair wild to messy curls that border an afro. “Madam?” He asks. “O-oh, thank you.” you respond finally, retrieving the scarf he holds out to you.

You don’t remember the losing this article of clothing, hell, you didn’t even know you owned it. “You are lost, aren’t you?” he asks. His inviting voice starting to melt into a form of charm. “Um… kinda, is it noticeable?” You give a weak chuckle through your bashful behavior. He gives a grin of his own, “Don’t be so reluctant, (y/n). You are in the right direction.” 

Your heart beat stops.

“Do I know you?” you lowly ask, hardly audible. He gives another chuckle, crossing his arms with a graceful motion. “I’d like to know more, my dear.” He hums. You waste no time to run from this man. You sprint in the pattern you recalled, only praying this would keep you in a safe distance. You momentarily look back, no longer seeing him. Thank go-

“Ugh-” you stumble backwards as you crush into someone. 

“Sorry…”

“Don’t be, child.” his voice is now smoother than before. 

“What the fuck do you want from me…” you hiss, your hands mindlessly feeling around your coat pockets for anything you can use as makeshift protection. He inhales deeply, “I want to give you what you want.” he slowly hunches down to you, “To break that damn spell of yours.” 

Your exploring hands freeze, only able to tremble now. “Who are you…” your voice is hoarse, ridden with fear at this man… entity.

“Papa Legba, call me papa.” He beams. 

His eyes look like that of a goat’s, golden but split with the black bar. “Madam Charline fucked up with this one, didn’t she?” Your fearful trembling begins to soothe, shifting into a more comfortable position of standing. “I guess…” you muse. He nods, biting his splitten lip. “I am the one who tends to… clean up her messes.” He holds out his hand. “I can even dismiss this spell, give you a key to the gate… freedom.” he purrs. 

Freedom? Hell, that sent goosebumps up and down your back… you craved nothing but splitting this damned spell, you hated how tethered it made you and Dan feel. Limiting your free spirits to 10 feet. You yearned for that taste of freedom at 11 feet.

“You sound interested…” His smirk almost spills with delight. “What do I have to do…” you nearly moan. He softly nods at this, preparing to spill his next words of enticing promise. “It’s very simple, my dear..” He moves his head to your ear, his cheek grazing the side of your own. His warm lips inches from your ear radiating heat from his words.

“Give me your soul.”

No longer is his breath warm, but is cold as ice. His voice vibrates as if there is more than one entity speaking it. 

You rip your head back, “Hell no.” He scoffs at your answer. “Child, I give you the key to your shackles, yet you still grip the chains…” 

“I’m not roping myself into some soul selling shit.” you dangerously warn. “That’s what will happen if you give your soul what it wants, baby.” You walk past him, ignoring his words. “If you let yourself have that boy, you’d be practically writing your soul away anyways.” You block him out, once more trying to get to your train. “Think about it, my dear. No soul-No spell.” You spin yourself to face him behind you, a nasty sneer rippled across your face. 

“I’d rather spend eternity chained to Dan, than walk in freedom with no ability to enjoy it… Dan is freedom enough for me.” You hiss. 

You once more resume your search, no longer hearing or feeling the presence of Papa. 

“Erm… eh- excuse me.” 

You groan, what the hell now?

“Ehh excuse me..” You sigh, circling on your heel to see the man. 

“Ye-”

Its Dan. 

“Forgive me, I erm- Do you know the A train is?” His English is broken, why is Dan talking so odd. Wait, you’ve heard this accent before. “The A… train?” you repeat glancing back down to the ticket crinkled in your palm.

It finally made sense.

This is how Avi met Debbie. 

You smile at him, tears burning at your eyes. “I’m actually going on that train, I can show you.” Dan gives you a giant smile, matched with his massive exhale. “Oh, thank you er- very much!” You grin as you lead him to the A train. 

“You’re not from New York, are you?” you inquire as he follows you onto the subway. He gives a guilty giggle, “Is it that er- recognized?” You bite back a laugh with a bubbly smile. “Little bit.” You note. 

You chat with him the entirety of the short travel, he tells you about how he came to the US, all while you try to translate his broken english. You can’t help the butterflies blooming inside of you at the sight of him. His wild hair is contained into a baseball cap, clearly trying to blend in more to the city crowd. 

As you get off the train, you start to feel slight sadness bubble inside of you, knowing that this moment must come to an end. You lead him up the stairs to the fresh outdoors. “Well, I hope I helped you out…” “Leigh.” he completes. You nod, “Leigh.” you repeat. You rub the back of your neck, searching for words to say, when you feel his arm suddenly wrap around your shoulders. “We are going to lunch, okay?” He beams. 

You blush madly, a short laugh slipping your lips, “Um, I can’t… I just ate.” His smile holds off, “oh… well-” “But…” You smile taking a pen from your pocket. “Here..” you take his arm and write random numbers, which you know to be Debbie’s phone number. He can’t control his eager smile. “Well, I am er- happy to get lunch!” you nod at him, “call me, okay? See ya soon.” You wave to him before finally separating. “Oh- ma’am!” you face him again, “yes?”

Dan is no longer the eager mock of his father, but now bares a still and serious expression.

“Don’t fall asleep at the wheel next time.” he deadpans.

….what.

~

“(Y/N)!” You jolt awake, Dan ripping the wheel in another direction, the car violently swerving to dodge the racing Honda coming head on. You grip the wheel trying to control where you veer off. “DAN DAN!” you scream. Your heart is nearly bruising your ribs with how violent it is pounding. You stiffen your arms and brace against the seat as you steer the vehicle off into the grass where it finally hits a hold. 

The seatbelt restricts Dan as his body threatens to throw forward. When you both finally settle and realize the car isn’t moving, you let yourself breathe. You shake as you look to Dan. “Sh-shit… I’m so sorry…” He shakes his head carefully unbuckling himself. “Nono it’s fine, it’s fine. Are you alright?” He unbuckles you as he checks you for wounds. “I’m okay, honestly, I’m fine..” He distrusts this when you hiss as his hand drapes over your neck. He grabs your chin, turning it to reveal the raw mark from the seatbelt’s rubbing. “Shit…” he mumbles. You watch as he begins to fumble with the window crank, slowly peeling himself out of the car. “Dan-” He races around to your door, nearly ripping it off its hinges as he opens it. You wince as he slides his arms under your knees and behind your back, cradling you out of your seat. 

“I’m fine, Dan.” “You need to sleep.” You snort, tipping your head back. “Trust me, that power nap satisfied five years worth of sleep.” He chewed his cheek, not ready to admit you were right just yet. “Still, we should try and rest for a while… you’ve been driving this entire trip.” You refuse to say anything, because in all honesty, you were getting tired of driving. 

“We are right outside of New Orleans… think you can make it till then? We can power nap right after, and I can drive the way back.” “You don’t know stick.” “I can catch on.” 

You sigh, not really physically capable of decision making or putting up a fight. “Fine…” He smiles and softly lets you back on your feet. “Get in the car…” you grunt as you attempt to slide back into your seat. Dan blocks your way, sticking his arm out. “What?” He has a suggestive smirk and you know exactly what is going to happen. “Dan-” He wraps his arms around your waist, gently peppering your neck with kisses. You heavily inhale as you battle a laugh, accidentally slipping a moan. 

Your skin grows cold feeling his lips part into a devious grin against your neck. His teeth gently nibble on your tender flesh, your knees grow weak under his hot breath. He must’ve felt your body begin to shiver, because before you know it, your legs are hoisted around his hips and you’re pinned to the cold metal of the car. You wince at the rapid temperature changes between Dan’s chest and the bug. “D-Dan, we are literally on the side of the road-” He swiftly slips a hand onto the backseat door opening it. “We are on a time crunch-” He pulls away from your collarbone and presses his head to yours, his eyes droopy with want. 

“If you want me to stop, just say so.” you feel the words trap in your throat, giving you your answer. “Fine… fine, be quick.” His lips melt into yours, you once more moan as you feel his teeth graze your bottom lip before dragging his warm kisses down your neck. He carefully leans into the backseat, laying you down while closing the door behind him with his foot. 

Flashes from the previous night burn in your head as he picks up his pace. His spidery hand carefully slip under your back, dragging down to your thigh as he gives a firm grip at your ankle, yanking you closer to him. Your face swells with heat as your legs are forcibly tightened around his waist, both of you spilling with whatever furnace was lit in your lower core. You slide your hand down to his waist as his lips once again meet yours. Your fingertips tease along the seam of his jeans. He doesn’t hesitate to use his free hand to begin unbuckling himself free. 

Your chest burns and tightens as you watch him eagerly glide his belt off before racing back to your embrace. His mouth begins to open more in the kiss, you whimper under his nasty hunger for you. Your fingers lace into his hair as his hand snakes down your body, gently peeling off your sweatpants. You untuck your leg, making it easier for him to discard of the clothing. He brings his lips to your ear, a heated chuckle vibrating your skin.

“I love you.” his voice burns your eardrums, you feel like melted wax to his flame. Your senses consist of nothing but his damn deodorant. It isn’t long until you feel a familiar touch drift below your navel, hooking the fabric of your underwear under his finger. He simply slides it to the side before adjusting his own boxers to free himself. Honestly, you were still too embarrassed to look. Last night, trust me, you saw plenty of it. 

Your distracted thoughts were muted though, when his grip locked on your hips. Your legs tightened around him as he held an unbreakable gaze to your eyes. 

Fuck he was gorgeous.

You bite your lip, reading exactly what he wants to do, and this is enough of an invitation for him. You tip your head back as he slides himself in you. Your lips tremble as a both pained and starving moan slip. You weren’t a virgin, but hell Dan was an adjustment. And he only took a short moment before repeating the same thrust, making your eyes screw shut tightly. 

Only to open wide to hear his own moan. He bends over, nearly sucking your breath out of your lungs as he kissed you passionately. One of his hands wandering to support him against the window. Your legs tighten, giving him full awareness that you needed more of him. 

He happily obliged.


	13. Don't dream it's over

Charline sat at her crystal ball table, the beaded curtain shielding her private room in the back of her shop. Her head throws back as she sniffles, wiping her nose clean of the angel dust from the blow. She shutters as the drug vibrates through her body. Exhaling, she once more looks upon her cracked crystal ball. “Shoulda made em pay for it…” she scoffed, giving her nose a final swipe of her wrist. 

She gently rose to her feet, gripping her wooden chair as her dazed limbs stumbled. Her eyes were aching and heated from the light deprivation, only the glow of her orb gave her light exposure in her dark room. Her bones jumped at the sudden sound of a screaming bell. Shutting her eyes, her soul hummed to her just exactly who was present in her dwelling. 

“About time…” she mumbled as you and Dan welcomed yourselves in. “You’re not running this time.” you huff. Her eyes shift between you both, shoulders rocking with her hushed laughter. “Baby, I’ll leave whenever I want to…” Her voice is graveled. Dan’s eyes glazed at the sight of white residue on her table, “Coke?” He asks bluntly. 

“When your soul is constantly buzzing, needlessly searching to speak to others or see them, you need a little somethin’ to wind down.” “And what, weed was too small of a baby step?” He pressed. “I could smoke down an entire meth pipe, and my brain wouldn’t even wince at the toxins. Coke is sugar at this point.” Her voice grows dry, far more tiresome than her usual sly behavior. You swipe the chair out, sitting yourself down as Dan leans against the back. 

“Why are you even here? I said I can’t break the spell.” “Believe it or not, that’s not why we’re here.” Dan’s eyes locked on your form, attempting to redirect Charline’s focus. “I saw him.” You state. Her jaw locks as her posture becomes stiff. 

“Papa?” She whispers. You nod, “Papa Legba.” 

Charline painfully winces as she looks away. “Baby, that was a dangerous game to play-” “I didn’t summon him.” You intrude. “Doesn’t matter if you ask or not. He comes when your soul is begging without direction. That’s just how nasty voodoo is, baby. You call for help, but gotta roll the dice for which team listens…” She sits herself into her own chair, blowing the rest of the coke off the table. “But he don’t just pick nobody… your soul had somethin’ sweet to offer..” You shift in your seat as your skin crawls. Dan’s hand grips your shoulder as a petty attempt to comfort. 

“I can’t say what that is, sadly. But what I can do, is tell you that avoiding him will be your safest bet… Papa is no good deed fella… he’s got friends in low places, and you don’t wanna see how deep that low can get.” Her voice is nearly rattled with fear, not just for you, but for herself as well. “You don’t have any protection spells or trinkets?” She shakes her head, “Baby, you already dipped your toe in voodoo enough by messing around in this shop.” she leans in to you both. “Clear up this spell, and run as far as you can…” 

Not really wanting her to repeat that, you obey, getting to your feet as Dan slips his arm around you. “Madam Charline?” She faces you as you dwell in the beaded doorway. 

“Thank you.” 

She nods to you, “It’s what I do, baby.” she beams.

~

“So, if Charline wasn’t the thing we drove here for, what is?” Dan is practically dragging you at this point, “You’ll see.” he insists. You’re contempt on being silent, until you begin to recognize the streets he pulls you down. “No.” you deadpan. “What?” “We are not going to the bar.” He stops his walk and towers over you, “You wanna get rid of this spell or not?” You scoff at his attitude, “Well, of course I do, Dan. Just, we don’t need the bar for that.” “Yeah, believe it or not we do.” You shook your head at this. “Dan… whatever magic I thought was there, isn’t.” He groans, rubbing his head. “Yes, it is. It’s the only magic that can save us, (y/n). So just, please… trust me.” he begins to pull on your wrist again. “No, Dan.” You slip loose of his grip. He looks back to you both stunned and offended. “(y/n)-” “I said no.” His posture straightens as his mouth swells sour. “I’m trying to help you, babe.” “I am not going to that bar.” “Why… Why are you being so difficult?!” he snaps. 

“Dan, I’m trying to tell you that it’s bullshit. There is no magic there. None, zip, nada.” You throw your hands with your words, the dramatization overpowering you. “I’m not asking that from you, I’m TELLING you what Charline said. The woman who MADE this damn thing between us.” 

“And why in the hell would going to some bar fix this?” “Why are you all of a sudden so afraid to go there? You were so gung-ho about it our first time here. What happened to ‘wanting to feel the magi-’” his words break on his lips. The dry bitterness begins to stiffen his heart.

“You’re doing it again, aren’t you.” 

“Doing what?” you nearly hiss.

“You’re holding back.”

You stay quiet. 

His lips curve into a broken smile, his chest heaving with a painful laugh. “Hell… shit, (y/n)... after everything? You still don’t trust me?” “Dan, it’s not that-” “Then what the hell is it? Cos’ I’m doing everything I absolutely can to prove to you that I’m not going to hurt you.” Your eyes divert away, guilt boiling in your throat as your stomach depresses. “Nothing lasts forever-” “Oh my god…” his disbelief is presented through a hoarse chuckle. He spins on his heel, turning his back to you. 

“I’m not saying ‘i love you’ to play with your head. I’m not saying it in hopes of not being alone for a few months. I’m saying it because I fucking feel it, with every beat of my damn heart, and in the very depths of my soul.” He faces you once more, 

“I fucking FUCKING love you. I live to see your smile, to hear that damn laugh everyday, to smell your fucking shampoo as soon as you walk into a room, to see your heart stopping eyes. I want to make you happy, I want to help you when you hurt, I want to give you the world and more… so why-WHY would you think i’d want to destroy you with this? I know love is a bitch, but hell, I want all of it. I want every nasty side of it and heavenly high, I just don’t fucking care as long as it’s you… It HAS to be you.” 

Your feet feel like cinder-blocks were glued to them, You wanted to talk, you wanted to let yourself love him… but…

“Dan-” “Just… say it.” He begs, the softness of his voice is breaking every bit of your soul. 

You remain quiet.

He bites his lip, looking away as the sheet of dampness coats his eyes. “Let’s go to this damn bar and break this spell…” he pivots back to walking, the pull gently dragging you behind. 

The silent walk feels a lot longer than it truly was, how easy heartache makes a 5 minute walk feel like 5 hours. Before you know it, you and Dan are walking inside the bar. He scans the area, almost everything (save a few decorations) was basically the same as his dream. The only vivid difference being who roamed behind the counter. It wasn’t Timothy, but he bore a strong resemblance. 

Dan sat down at the bar with you, your anxious self slightly swiveling the spinning stool. “‘Can I get for ya?” The chipper young man asks you both. Dan simply waves himself clear. “Yuengling?” you ask. He nods at you, “On tap, ‘ll be a jiffy, miss.” You smile as he turns to prep your beer. “Dan… It’s not that I don’t trust you, there is just… it’s so much more…” “It’s okay…” You gaze at him, your heart dropping at the sight of his red eyes drooling with tears. “Just, let’s enjoy our company together for now… okay?” He gives a smile, you know he is trying to just make things happy right now, but damn that smile shatters you… He is clearly broken, and you hated that it was your doing…

Your eyes shift to your nervously tapping feet. “I- um… I’m gonna go get a breath really quick…” He nods without looking at you. You take this chance to slip away, just in time to miss your beer being placed at your seat. The bartender looks to Dan with his brows dropped in confusion, “Stepped outside for a sec.” He answered for you. He nodded with a grin, “You got a beautiful wife.” He admires. Dan is about to protest, when he sees a portion of you peeking out from the doorway. He gives a gentle smile, “Yeah, she’s a keeper.” He hums, slyly swiping a sip of your beer. He licks his lips as the thick head leaves a gentle kiss of bubbles on his mouth. 

You shutter outside, both from the chill of the wind and your aching heart. You just want to go home… fuck the tour, fuck the costumes, the paycheck, fuck-... his eyes… god, he was so broken. You wanted to love him, you trusted him… you honest to god did! Just, you remember how dazed and in love your parents were. How earth shattering their romance seemed, almost too good to be true… How blisteringly beautiful the magic they described sounded, far more musing than any song or piece of art…

But how easily it burned to dust, because words turned to screams, and screams turned to distance, and distance… You wanted to love Danny, but it would be the death of you to put you both in that. You couldn’t do that to him… you couldn’t… 

Your soul began to burn, you simply winced to feed your ignorance. You knew it wanted Dan, You knew your heart wanted him, you knew you wanted him.

So what’s holding you back?...

You look to your feet, the memory of his hurt over how he thought he harmed you. The tears he shed for you, all the nights he would drive you home or let you crash with him. All the days he came to your house to help you when you were stressed or sick. Hell, he was even there when your dad remarried… he was always there… 

He will always be there.

Because you love him.

And you will always be there.

Because…

“Danny!” 

You stand in the doorway to the bar, and the moment Dan’s eyes meet you from his bar stool,

You both are hit with the same vibrating sensation. You smile, tears burning in your eyes as he stands to his feet.

“I love you.” You croak. 

He begins to walk to you. 

 

“I love you!” You pipe up.

He is nearly sprinting now in the short distance. Your souls flush with a familiar heat as your hearts throb. The magnetic pull stronger than you’d ever felt it be. He snatches you into his arms as he practically dips you into his kiss. Your arms wrapping around his neck as you try to be as close to him as possible. You begin to feel it, the magnetic pull almost delaying in your actions as his velvet lips weave to your rose petal ones.

And as you pull apart, your bodies shutter with butterflies and a brand new sensation of love.

“Did you feel that?” You ask, your eyes searching his happily damp ones. His lips spread into a eager smile, 

“Magic.” He mutters before kissing you once more.


	14. Your Song

“Push sweetheart-” “IM FUCKING PUSHING YOU ASSHOLE.” “You’re so beautiful-” Arin whimpers as Suzy’s hand nearly breaks his. “You’re doing great, Mrs. Hanson!” The doctor says as she sits hidden by Suzy’s raised legs. “We’re almost close enough to see the head, let's push on three.” Suzy exhales sharply as sweat beads down her face. Her baptized hair sticking to her neck and face. Arin uses his free hand to carefully drift the strands away, placing a ginger kiss to her forehead. “You’re doing great.” he whispers to her. She screws her eyes shut as she nods, tears beginning to merge with her sweat.

“Hey-hey… I’m proud of you, I’m so damn proud.” he warmly chuckles, a gentle smile melting on his face. 

“Three!” Suzy throws herself forward as she screams through another agonizing push. Arin’s chest tightens with pride as he watches his precious wife conquer something he knows he’d never have the strength to feel or do. He knew for damn sure that Suzy would be a fucking amazing mother. 

“Alrighty mom, We see the head! Just a few more-” Suzy without hesitation throws herself into another push, clearly ready to get the damn thing out. 

Arin’s attention is snapped to the window when he sees both you and Dan standing there banging on the glass. Dorky smiles painted on you. Arin chuckles to himself, thankful his best friend was able to be here for this part of his life. “You got this big cat!” Danny yells through the muffled glass. Arin nods as his wife finishes out her final pushes. 

And on the final push, both Suzy and Arin’s ears ring at the sound of a delicate cry. “Here she is!” The doctor proclaims, beginning to wipe the baby and swaddling her. Arin is still with shock, Suzy rests her back into the bed, panting heavily. The doctor beams as she places the wrapped newborn in Suzy’s tired arms after cutting her cord. Suzy’s fingertips carefully drift to the blanket, exposing the face of their baby girl. 

“Oh god, Arin she’s so beautiful…” Suzy whimpers, her voice shaking with tears. Arin leans in, a sob beginning to burn in his throat at the wholesome sight. “We made that.” He utters in awe. Suzy smiles to her husband. “Her. We made Lilly.” She remarks. Arin nods passionately as he places a kiss on now both of his girls. “Perfect, fucking perfect.” He hums as he and his wife continue to bask in the warmth of their new family. 

~

Arin stands off to the side, lightly bouncing Lilly to a random beatbox he threw together. “Arin, please don’t taint her with that already…” Suzy groans. “Someone needs to appreciate my talent.” he snorts. “Mommy doesn’t know what she’s saying, she’s still loopy on drugs.” He coos to her. Suzy rolls her eyes. Their attention is captured by the door opening to you and Dan. “Hiiii” Dan sings, balloon strings tuffed into his hands as you subtly try to push the fat balloons through the door. “You guys made it…” Suzy hums. “We had quite the bill to pay at the rental, but we did.” Dan assures. He ties the strings to a desk as he makes his way to Suze, kissing her head. “You look great Suze.” He praises. She giggles, waving her hand at him, “I feel and look like utter hell.” “Nonsense.” He debates before walking to Arin. You smile as you close the door behind you. 

“You wanna hold her?” Arin asks. Dan doesn’t hesitate to begin dousing his hands in sanitizer, dropping a seat on the couch. You smirk as Arin softly places the wrapped babe in his arms. Dan’s mouth parts as a gasp slips him. “Hii!” he softly chimes. He can’t help but shuffle his attention between the baby and everyone in the room, overwhelmed with joy. “You’re so precious! What a Princess!” he muses, slightly adjusting his arms to her comfort. 

He beams at Arin, “Damn, you guys… she’s beautiful.” This is when Suzy suddenly notices just how far apart you are. “Did… did you guys…” You smile with a nod, Arin grinning at you. “You actually did it?” He asks. Dan hums his yes, his gentle eyes locking onto you. Suzy slowly pushes herself up a bit, “So… you two?” You walk to Suzy’s bedside, taking a seat on a gap space. “There might be something.” You tease. Dan rolls his eyes, “She put up a hell of a fight.” His voice is brushed with amazement. “Thank god, it’s about time.” Suzy groans. “It was only a matter of time, voodoo or not.” Arin states, taking a seat beside Dan. 

Dan carefully gets up to hand Lilly to Suzy. “She might be hungry, trying to get grabby at my titties.” He jokes. Suzy grins as she combs the few hairs on her daughter’s hair while she begins to fuss. “You’re gonna run me dry before long.” Arin scoffs, “Um, Sharing is caring, Lilly.” You audibly gag as you throw up your hands, “That’s my cue.” you chuckle pacing to the door. Dan gets up, pulling Arin into a tight hug, whispering how proud he is before following after you. 

As you round the corner to the lobby with everyone, you notice how gushed Dan’s attitude seems. “You still floating on air over there?” you ask. He nods without hesitation. “How long until we can start having babies?” He playfully asks. You hiss air through an inhale as you shake your head. 

“Let’s start with a date first, jewfro.” He beams at you, vining his fingers into yours.

“Whatever you say, Candy.”


	15. Season of the witch

You hum as you brew another pot of tea, scratching your wild bed head. Dan’s bed was basically a cloud, but hell, deeper sleep meant messier wake ups. You mindlessly picked at the graphic design on the old band shirt you swiped from Dan, jumping when his arms suddenly wrap around your waist. He smiles as his lips brush past your hair and onto your neck, his breath is warm, but it was the morning so you dare not smell it. “Morning.” he moaned into your flesh. You grin as his teeth softly graze your neck, biting your lip to restrict a moan. “We have work in a few hours, Dan. No time to mess around.” His hands grip your hips, spinning you to face him. “Is that a challenge?” He purrs. You roll your eyes, “It’s a reality.” You grin as you bop his head with the ball of your palm. He shuts his eyes as he chuckles, carefully releasing you. 

“I’m shocked to see you up so early.” He turns to pull out your usual mug from the cabinet. “It’s not super early.” You note, sitting yourself on the counter. “You beat the alarm, usually never do.” dan swings open his fridge door, scouring for something quick but delectable for breakfast. “I’m usually screaming in your ear twenty minutes after.” He reminds. “And you wonder why i’m not a morning person.” You jeer. 

He rolls his neck as he pulls out cream cheese, shutting the door with his foot. “I dunno about that, my morning voice seems to wake you up preeettyyy welll.” he hums, dragging on his vibrating voice. You silently damn yourself for ever telling him how right his morning voice made you feel. He hums to himself as he begins to make two sets of bagels for the both of you. “Did you ever sign that birthday card for Lilly?” You ask, watching him toss the bagels into the toaster. “Yeah… wait… I think?” He huffs as he fights with the switch on the toaster.

You hop down, swiping the knob for the toaster to accept the contents. He sheepishly smiles, “Thanks…” You peel the card clipped to the cork-board, handing it to him. “Sign it. Her party is at four.” He looks around for an available pen. “She’s one. Don’t forget that-” “I know I know.” Dan dismisses, signing the card as “uncle Dan” beside your “Aunty (y/n)”. 

Dan smiles, pulling you into an embrace, kissing your cheek. “Maybe afterwards… we can… go for a walk?” You raise a brow at him. “A walk?” you repeat, more droned. He nods suspiciously. “Yeah. I just wanna take a nice stroll at night.” he fibs. 

You squint at him, clearly seeing he’s bullshitting you. “Fine.” You bend. His smile is wild and he seems way too eager for a ‘walk’. “Oh, fuck. Good.” He tosses his head back with a giddy chuckle. “Are you sure it’s just a walk?” You push. He nods rapidly. “Yes!” he nearly shouts. “Alrighty….” you reply uneasy. His eyes lock to yours before leaning in for a gentle kiss. You smile, feeding into it, kissing his softly. Though it’s a relaxed lip lock, it’s still passionate enough to melt your heart and weaken your knees. 

You feel your lips vibrate as Dan groans to the sound of his phone blaring from the bedroom. “I think that’s Arin… I’ll be a second.” He smiles as he begins his trek back to the bedroom. You shake your head watching him hustle to his room. “I love you!” he shouts.

You grin.

He rounds the corner, “I love you t-”

Your words are ripped from your throat as you jolt forward, painfully falling to your knees.

Dan runs back out, searching you over in panic. “Fuck, are you alright?” You nod, slowly rising to your feet. “Y-yeah. I guess I tripped?” He nods at you. “What happened?” You blinked trying to replay the moment, “I-I don’t know. I just kinda…” 

You both froze, eyes locking back on each other as an unwelcome yet familiar chill races down your bodies.

“Oh no…” you both mutter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lmaooo tricked y'all. 
> 
> Part two is gonna be arriving shortly. If I didn't break it into parts, it'd be a bible not a story so hope you enjoyed part one. !


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